Dat Kid from Cleveland: a history of emo rap’s most influential artist.
Dive into the discography of Kid Cudi, an experimental outcast who paved the way for rap to be more vulnerable.
In the 15 years of Kid Cudi’s career to date, he has left an insurmountable impact on his fans: many point to Cudi as an artist who has personally changed the trajectory of their lives. The simplicity of his music accesses an emotional core which many other artists struggle to target. He is constantly cited by his contemporaries as a musical influence, seen with artists as disparate as Travis Scott, Drake, and Juice WRLD. With Kid Cudi's ninth studio album Insano set to release in January 2024, now is the perfect time to introduce a new audience to his music.
A Kid Named Cudi (2008)
Kid Cudi (real name Scott Mescudi) was raised in Cleveland and began rapping in 2003 at the age of 19. He was then discovered by Plain Pat, a record producer for Kanye West's G.O.O.D. Music label. His big break on the scene came with his debut mixtape A Kid Named Cudi in 2008, which featured sample-based beats from the likes of J. Dilla, Danger Mouse, and the Neptunes.
A Kid Named Cudi is best known for its standout single "Day 'n' Nite," produced by Dot da Genius. The song was a massive hit, and would also later find a place on his first studio album. A Kid Named Cudi sees Cudi carving out his trademark sound of melodic rap infused with a smattering of rock, indie, and electronica. His ability to find a medium between singing and rapping instantly made him stand out to listeners.
Man on the Moon: The End of Day (2009)
The success of A Kid Named Cudi got Kid Cudi officially signed to G.O.O.D. Music in fall 2008. After the arrival of the new year, Cudi's fame began to skyrocket. He had some major hits like "Memories" with David Guetta, as well as a remix of the Man on the Moon track "Pursuit of Happiness," which established him in the college party scene. Man on the Moon: The End of Day would be Cudi's debut album released under G.O.O.D. Music. You could easily make the argument that 2009 was the best year of Cudi's career.
Man on the Moon: The End of Day took the genre-bending intimacy of A Kid Named Cudi and fleshed it out conceptually. The record is a foray into Cudi's dreams and nightmares over spacey, synthetic soundtracks. Through this look at his surreal world, narrated by Chicago rapper Common, listeners develop an in-depth knowledge of the trials and tribulations that characterize Cudi's life, mostly due to his willingness to be open about suicide attempts and other trauma. He often depicts himself as an outsider from another planet, leading to the demonyms like "the Martian" and the titular "Man on the Moon."
Man on the Moon II: The Legend of Mr. Rager (2010)
Man on the Moon II: The Legend of Mr. Rager takes the dark themes of the original Man on the Moon and cranks them up to another level. His substance abuse, leading to coke and alcohol addictions, is put on full display as Cudi grapples with his dark alter ego Mr. Rager. Any previous optimism is replaced by nihilism. While there were already rock elements in his music, this album leans into them more than ever, with features like St. Vincent on the track "MANIAC." Anthemic hooks like that of "Erase Me" feat. Kanye West and the crashing cymbals on "REFOVEV" continue the rockstar glorification and aggression that is central to his work.
WZRD (2012)
After Man on the Moon II, Kid Cudi, thankfully, sobered up. Out of an ensuing writer's block, a collaborative album with his longtime producer Dot da Genius was announced, a self-titled album under their group name WZRD. WZRD turned Cudi away from his hip-hop roots and towards a full indie rock album. Cudi's DIY aesthetic and off-key nasal singing add to an album that is daring in its scope yet unpolished. Cudi did not completely pigeonhole himself into the indie rock scene, however. Songs like "Teleport 2 Me, Jaime" and "The Dream Time Machine" have an ethereal vibe more reminiscent of cloud rap. By contrast, "Love Hard" and "High Off Life" exude the energy of rock anthems.
Indicud (2013)
Before advancing with the much-anticipated Man on the Moon III, Cudi decided to part ways with G.O.O.D. Music, propelling himself into a new phase of artistic control with Indicud. To that end, Indicud is his first entirely self-produced effort. It marks a departure from his mellow, introspective beginnings to a bolder, more assertive persona, with songs like "Just What I Am" and "Immortal" reflecting on his more self-assured, confident character. "Solo Dolo Part II" with Kendrick Lamar flips the original "Solo Dolo," revisiting the melancholic tone of its predecessor but inflecting it with new dynamism. Overall, the album best demonstrates a trait that has come to define Cudi over the years: his ability to reinvent his music to stay relevant with his audience.
Satellite Flight: The Journey to Mother Moon (2014)
Hyping up the release of Man on the Moon III, Cudi released a short project that was supposed to serve as a "prologue" in the interim. Originally conceived as an EP, this project is a return to his earlier space-rock style and incorporates extraterrestrial sounds and themes. The project has an ad-hoc, off-the-cuff feel even though Cudi's production is at its most detailed, with a lot of the project buoyed by cinematic instrumentals. Some of his most painful experimenting is evident here, such as his harrowing, sorrowful wails on songs like "Internal Bleeding" and "Troubled Boy." The ambient house track "Too Bad I Have To Destroy You Now" is another production and performance highlight, dominated by a single verse from Cudi.
Speedin' Bullet 2 Heaven (2015)
Instead of releasing Man on the Moon III in 2015, Kid Cudi made perhaps the most notorious heel turn of his career, releasing a double disc album primarily inspired by '90s alternative rock and grunge music. Described by Cudi himself as a "cry for help," SB2H is an intensely personal project that he has often steered away from discussing publically. Nonetheless, the album contains some of Cudi's most emotional content to date over stripped-back guitar instrumentals that highlight the loneliness of his emotive voice. The entrancing loop of "Adventures" or the intimacy of a song like "Handle with Care" create a record grounded in solitude. Vocal experimentation like growls and screams dominate this dismally empty and morbid atmosphere. It is certainly the most isolated body of work to come out of Kid Cudi's discography, even more so than the Man on the Moon series.
Passion, Pain, and Demon Slayin' (2016)
PPDS sees a return to the structure of Cudi's first two records, with the album narratively sequenced in five acts just like its predecessors. While retaining the atmospheric vibes that dominated his early work, the album also incorporates much of the experimental flourishes of his later work. For instance, PPDS is decidedly more orchestral, with ambient tracks filled out by Cudi's trademark humming and extended song structures that cause many songs to run close to six minutes. The lyrical content of the album primarily concerns newfound optimism as Cudi surpasses his demons. This development mirrors his real life: it only came after checking himself into rehab in October 2016.
Kids See Ghosts (2018)
As part of the 2018 Wyoming projects where Ye produced an album for several G.O.O.D. Music artists, we saw the first collaborative Kanye West and Kid Cudi album since they began working together in 2008. The seven-track album delves into mental health, positive self-talk and growth, continuing the positive emotional trend of Cudi's mental health. The project serves as a capstone for both West and Cudi’s individual mental health struggles. The latter sounds equally as home crooning on "Reborn" or rapping on "4th Dimension," marking the moment he accomplished the perfect synthesis of his styles. KSG is a quick listen that is super easy to recommend.
Man on the Moon III: The Chosen (2020)
After ten excruciatingly long years since the previous installment in the Man on the Moon trilogy, longtime Cudi fans finally got thrown a bone in December 2020. This threequel sees Cudi extend himself into the modern trap rap scene, delivering ad-libs that wouldn't sound out of place on a Travis Scott song. He adapts his style to what’s currently trendy, even experimenting with new sounds such as drill. Overall, public opinion considered MOTMIII a worthy followup from Cudi, and it still contains tracks reminiscent of his earlier work. He still has an uncanny ability to speak to listeners as if you’re right there in the room with him.
Entergalactic (2022)
Cudi continues his creative ventures by developing an animated TV show, and, naturally, also producing a soundtrack for the series. This soundtrack, doubling as a full studio album, contains some of Cudi's most sappy and lovesick work yet. The turn to more pensive tracks with more concise song structures clearly benefited Cudi, with "New Mode" and "Willing to Trust" being clear highlights that stand tall among his best-received work.
Insano (Expected January 2024)
While Insano is still as of yet unreleased, we can expect Cudi to continue his adaptation of styles from others. "Porsche Topless" features BNYX production often employed by rage artists like Yeat. Other singles for the album like "Ill What I Bleed" or "At the Party" with Travis Scott reflect Cudi's turn to trap-influenced party bangers.
Kid Cudi remains the inventor of a rap world that is now staunchly his. No one can deny the influence his emotional transparency has had on artists like Drake, who likely would not see the same level of fame today if not for Kid Cudi paving the way. His narrative of being an outsider motivated many artists in the emo rap scene, and caused Cudi to emerge as a leader who inspired artists like Travis Scott to incorporate more rock elements in their music. His music plays as well with stoners as it does in raves, a reflection of the permanence and accessibility of Kid Cudi's work.
edited by Lekha Masoudi.
album artwork believed to belong to either the publisher of the work or the artist.