Cudi Connection

This week Kid Cudi released his debut album, "Man On The Moon: The End of Day". Aside from the new Lupe Fiasco, this has been my most anticipated album of 2009. This is NOT an album review. This is a nod of respect to a really dope artist with an uncanny ability to transcend musical labels and connect with his audience. When I first heard the "A Kid Named Cudi" mixtape early this year (which I still bump) I became an instant fan. From a purely rap stand point Cudi isn't the most amazing lyricist and from a singing stand point he's not the best singer either. Cudi's strengths lie in the things that can't be taught. The way he jumps between singing and rapping feels very organic and the producers he works with compliment that style really well and helped him to pull me deeper into his alien but familiar world.

Man On The Moon is one of those albums I can bump from beginning to end. When he talks about the loneliness of being an outcast in "Solo Dolo" I feel like he's telling my story. As a shy and quiet kid I always hovered somewhere between the jocks and weird art kids and never fully related to either side. Him triumphing over his doubters in "Heart Of a Lion" and "My World" are really inspirational moments in the album where he makes it ok to be the weird kid. The album also contains fun clubby songs like "Enter Galactic" and "Make Her Say" however "Make Her Say" feels a little forced and doesn't fit with the overall feel of the album. In the Chip Tha Ripper assisted song, "Hyyerr" it feels like Cudi's channeling fellow Cleveland artists, Bone Thugs-n-Harmony in a trippy ode to altered mind states if you know what I mean. So far the album seems to very polarizing. Most people either love it or hate it and I think that's the way it should be. Most mainstream music is focussed on making money and appealing to as many people as possible. I don't doubt that record executives had at least some influence on this album but I give Cudi and his team props for creating art that at least from my perspective feels authentic and honest.