Kid Cudi is an artist who has had a massive impact on my life. He was the first rapper I listened to who addressed issues about mental health, and his music helped me get through many tough times in high school. His music gave me hope and helped me feel like I was not alone at times when I felt like I had no one to relate to. I know I am not in the minority by any means when I talk about how Kid Cudi was a big influence on me; like so many big fans of his(like me), many current music artists cite him as one of their biggest influences. Kid Cudi has touched almost everyone who has come after him in Hip Hop; from Travis Scott(whose stage name includes Kid Cudi’s real first name, Scott) to Kendrick Lamar and everyone in between, Kid Cudi has had a major effect on pretty much all Hip Hop artists in the last 10 years. Kid Cudi was one of the first “Alternative” Rappers; he incorporated Rock and Pop music into his sound in ways people had not done before, expanding the idea of what Hip Hop can be. Throughout his career, Kid Cudi got increasingly experimental with his sound, with some of his releases majorly missing the mark. In particular, everything in between 2013’s Indicud and 2020’s Man On The Moon III: The Chosen was just not very good. I appreciate that Kid Cudi wanted to expand his horizons and try different kinds of music but just could not capture the magic that he had captured with his music before this point. Man On The Moon III: The Chosen was a return to form for Kid Cudi; as the third edition of his legendary Man On The Moon series, Kid Cudi wanted to deliver something that his fans who have been around since the beginning would appreciate, and he accomplished this with that record. In 2022, he dropped Entergalatic, an otherworldly soundtrack album for an animated tv special of the same name. Staying extremely busy and hard-working, Kid Cudi has already returned with another record called INSANO. I would say this is his most modern-sounding record; instead of going with an Alternative Rap sound, this album leans into today’s Trap landscape more than Kid Cudi has ever done. In my opinion, the result of this is a mixed bag. The high points on INSANO are very solid, but the low points drag it down and it feels way too bloated. With that being said, there is still a lot to like on Insano, and I wanted to go over some of my favorite moments from it. Please let me know in the comments below what your favorite songs are from Kid Cudi’s INSANO, and also comment on how you feel about the record as a whole.

 

GET OFF ME WITH TRAVIS SCOTT

I started off this list with one of the Travis Scott collaborations from this project. I knew I had to include at least one of them considering Kid Cudi and Travis Scott’s undeniable chemistry and because of Travis Scott’s affinity for Kid Cudi’s music. Fans of both these artists have been clamoring for more music from both of them together for years since they released their single ‘THE SCOTTS’ a few years ago. Although we still have not gotten the full-length collaborative project they have teased, songs like ‘GET OFF ME’ are a nice buffer. ‘GET OFF ME’ has exactly the kind of sound and energy Hip Hop fans would want from a song by these two artists. GET OFF ME’ has a sludgy, dark, atmospheric feeling that is so heavy yet so airy. This highly saturated and looming instrumental makes me feel like I am floating, but it also feels like it is weighing me down. Both Travis Scott and Kid Cudi sound so natural on this instrumental. They play off of each other’s vocal tones and rap flows so well, adding to the epic feeling the instrumental already gives the song. ‘GET OFF ME’ is a song where Travis Scott and Kid Cudi excel at the things their older fans fell in love with, and it is a worthy collaboration by these two awesome artists. 

WOW WITH A$AP ROCKY

Out of all the songs I chose for this list, ‘WOW’ is the one with a sound that most resembles what Kid Cudi became known for back in the day. This is definitely a song I would recommend to people who mainly only enjoy Kid Cudi’s early music. The melody for this track has the kind of cloudy, Alternative element that Kid Cudi became known for. The beat for this one does have a modern Pop-Trap feeling, giving the song a modern element that can make it appeal to younger fans. Kid Cudi’s performance on this song is decent, but A$AP Rocky is the one who makes this song pop through his intricate flow and quirky energy. Without Rocky’s contribution, I probably would have only thought this song is okay; he adds so much life to the track. I feel like since A$AP Rocky has not been super active in the music industry over the last several years, people have forgotten how supremely talented he is. ‘WOW’ is a song that reminds people why he is considered to be one of the best and most talented rappers of the 2010s. 

ELECTROWAVE BABY

‘ELECTROWAVE BABY’ is the most off-the-wall and eccentric song I picked for this list(to be honest, it is probably the most unconventional song on the record in general). ‘ELECTROWAVE BABY’ is an aptly named song, as this song takes elements of 1970s Electronic Funk music and makes it sound fresh and newfangled. This song somehow combines 1980s Jazz-Fusion, 1970s Funk, Reggae music, and 2020’s New Wave Pop. This song has an extremely complex sound that somehow works out super well. Even though there are so many vastly different elements to this instrumental, they seem to mesh perfectly. As cool as the instrumental, the thing that takes this song over the top is Kid Cudi’s vocals. I really like how his smooth and light delivery slides over this instrumental and adds to the groovy feeling of the overall song. ‘ELECTROWAVE BABY’ is not the kind of track I would have ever expected to have heard from Kid Cudi, but I do appreciate that he was willing to take a risk like this because it totally worked out on the track. 

TOO DAMN HIGH WITH LIL YACHTY

There are multiple moments on this album where it seems like Kid Cudi tries to adapt to various forms of modern Pop-Trap and misses the mark on his attempt to appeal to younger music fans. ‘TOO DAMN HIGH’ with Lil Yachty is a case where his willingness to venture into new Pop-Trap sounds works out. This short and sweet banger is extremely saturated and distorted; it has the kind of bright, melodic, ethereal feeling one would expect to hear from a Destroy Lonely or Ken Carson song. Both Kid Cudi and Lil Yachty actually sound great on this instrumental. I enjoy the way Kid Cudi’s deeper and more guttural vocals contrast the lighter and breathier tone of Lil Yachty, who sounds so natural on this instrumental. Kid Cudi’s huskier tone also contrasts the melody, giving the song a full and all-encompassing feeling. ‘TOO DAMN HIGH’ is a case where Kid Cudi tried to show he can make music that fits into today’s Pop-Trap landscape and completely nailed it, partly due to the great contribution from Lil Yachty.

X & CUD WITH XXXTENTACION

To be honest, I was not sure how I was going to feel about ‘X & CUD’ when I saw it in this tracklist. In the past, apart from a couple of specific cases, I have not been a fan of posthumous releases. Artists like XXXTENTACION and Juice Wrld have been taken advantage of by the industry many times due to all of the snippets they recorded while alive for potential tracks. I have to say, Kid Cudi nailed it with this collaboration, delivering the amount of respect to XXXTENTACION’s artistry that he deserved. I had known that XXXTENTACION was inspired by Kid Cudi, but I never realized just how much this was the case before listening to ‘X & CUD.’ This track makes me wish these two had made a whole project together; their chemistry is insanely palpable, and there is the potential for something legendary in ‘X & CUD.’ Unfortunately, we will never get a full project from XXXTENTACION and Kid Cudi, but ‘X & CUD’ is a great track that is a reminder of what could have been. 

SEVEN WITH LIL WAYNE 

There are two songs from this album that I would say are head and shoulder above the rest in quality, and ‘SEVEN’ is one of them. Like ‘TOO DAMN HIGH,’ this song has a modern Pop-Trap sound that I would not have necessarily expected to hear from Kid Cudi. The melody for this track is so interesting, as somehow it feels bright and gloomy at the same time. The overall tone of the melody is warm, but there is a foreboding filter on it that almost makes it menacing. The song has a fast Trap beat that will get anyone moving when it comes on; I could see this one becoming a club banger because of how much vibrant energy it has. Kid Cudi sounds great on this track and his performance matches the energy of the instrumental, but the person who takes this one over the top is Lil Wayne. His excellent flow and animated delivery are so vigorous and give the track a spark that takes it over the top. ‘SEVEN’ is a song that has quickly emerged as a fan favorite from this record, and it is not tough to see why this is the case. 

RAGER BOYZ WITH YOUNG THUG

The track from this record that I think is a lot better than anything else other than ‘SEVEN’ is ‘RAGER BOYZ’ with Young Thug. As soon as I heard this song, I figured it had the potential to be a hit. I immediately downloaded this one to my personal playlist, and I would be surprised if I did not consider it to be one of the better songs of 2024 when the year is said and done. ‘RAGER BOYZ’ is a vivacious and fun banger that embodies all the aspects one would want from a collaboration between these two artists. The instrumental is a perfect morph between the galactic and wispy feeling that an Alternative Trap Kid Cudi song should have and the entertaining yet dingy feeling that a melodic Trap Young Thug song should have. It crosses the line between their respective styles perfectly and provides something for huge fans of both of their music. I truly enjoy the drastic difference in the vocals between Kid Cudi and Young Thug. Their extremely distinctive vocal styles make this song pop and give it so much life. Kid Cudi and Young Thug is not a collaboration I would have ever expected or needed, but I am glad we got it on ‘RAGER BOYZ’ because it works out so well.