Posts Tagged ‘Kid Cudi’

Wale ft. Kid Cudi “Focused”

Posted: October 17, 2011 in Music News
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Now that their “beef” is squashed, Wale and Kid Cudi have linked up for what’s being called the main radio single off Wale’s November 1 album Ambition. Wale has called this track “the best non-cheesy Top 40 record that you’re ever going to hear in your life.” The term ”non-cheesy Top 40″ is an oxymoron, but Wale does the best an emcee can reasonably do over this type of synthetic production. Cudi’s chorus work here is pretty much an afterthought. “Focused” will probably be one of the weaker tracks on the album.

WALE X KID CUDI “FOCUSED”

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Consequence ft. Kid Cudi “On My Own” [Prod. By Kanye West]

Posted: July 7, 2011 in Music News
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Although Consequence is done with G.O.O.D. Music., he has a lot of tracks he recorded in the years under Kanye West’s imprint. Earlier this year, a snippet of this song hit the internet to much fanfare. After hearing the entire track, it sounds like Consequence’s aborted Cons TV album might have been notable for having the signature soul sample loops that Kanye initially made his name on. Ironically, some of these lines can now be interpreted as a manifesto to Cons’ mentality following his very public GOOD Music split few months back.

CONSEQUENCE X KID CUDI ”ON MY OWN” [PROD. BY KANYE WEST]

Hype Williams Brings (Too Many) Flashing Lights for Kanye’s “All of the Lights” [VIDEO]

Posted: February 19, 2011 in Music News
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Hype Williams videos used to be grandiose examples of the “wretched excess” Hip-Hop videos can fall into. Sometimes, especially back in his 90s heyday, he hit home runs.  Unfortunately, this Kanye video for “All of the Lights” isn’t one of them.

First off, don’t watch this if you or anyone in your vicinity are prone to seizures. The bombardment of flashing lights will have you babbling like that poor reporter at the Grammys. The psychedelic visuals remains in place until we get to the lovely Rihanna.  Hip-Hop and R&B’s favorite yodeler looks fantastic, but unfortunately the clips of her are sparse compared to Kanye and Kid Cudi, the latter being decked out in a red Thriller jacket. For whatever reason, Fergie sits this one out.

Since Kanye dabbled in a lot of indie films for his Runaway joint, you have to think he got some ideas for this video from Enter the Void. Compare below and judge for yourself. This is not a complete strikeout for Hype Williams. Let’s call it a pop up fly ball.

Jay-Z and Kanye West’s Watch the Throne Coming in 2011

Posted: November 5, 2010 in Music News
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Fans will have to wait until next year for Kanye West and Jay-Z’s Watch the Throne album.

Originally, West planned to release Watch the Throne and My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy in November. But Kanye confirmed today (November 4) that the focus for the rest of the year will be his own LP and his G.O.O.D. team.

“It’s coming soon,” Kanye said during his Ustream conference call. “It’s gonna be early next year, though.”

The duo’s work has been heavily featured during Kanye’s G.O.O.D. Fridays series on tracks like the “Power (Remix),” “Monster,” and “So Appalled.” Last week’s song showcased the pair rhyming over the Pete Rock-produced “The Joy,” causing speculation on if the offering signaled the album’s direction.

Both artists have been recording since August. According to Jay-Z, they are close to wrapping up the 10-track album.

“Before I came into London we were in Bath at Peter Gabriel’s studio,” Jay-Z told Tim Westwood. “We recorded some songs there. It’s exciting that its coming out…[We’re] pretty close.”

At press time, no outside producers or guests emcees have been finalized.

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The greedy side of me was hoping this would come in November. But stepping back, it made little sense for them to rush it out like that.

Of course, the project would have gotten a lot of attention, but there would be a big risk of supersaturation with it dropping in the same month as Kanye album, Kid Cudi’s LP, and the G.O.O.D. Friday tracks. With all that music coming, fans wouldn’t really be able to digest it full without getting ready to move onto the next project.

According to Jay-Z on his recent Hot 97 stop, their target date is February, which is more than enough space for them to take their time selecting producers and determining the final tracklist.

Since 2009, we’ve seen a lot of artists moving towards the one emcee/one producer format. I wouldn’t mind seeing more artist partnership albums like Kanye and Jay-Z becoming the norm, even if it’s just mixtapes.

G.O.O.D. Friday 10/30/10: Curtis Mayfield Helps Kanye, Jay-Z & Pete Rock Rediscover the 90s

Posted: October 30, 2010 in Music News
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“No electro, no metro, a little retro…ah, perfecto!”

When Hip-Hop fans complain about how they miss the 90s, what do you think they really mean? Is it the baggy jeans or box braids they’re bemoaning the depature of? No, it’s the loss of the sound that defined the decade, specifically the early and mid 90′s work of producers like DJ Premier, Q-Tip, and Pete Rock. After playing around with autotune and the neo-electro stylings of today’s music, Kanye West seems to have begun to miss that sound too ( see his RZA/No I.D. track “Dark Fantasy” ). So this G.O.O.D. Friday/Saturday track isn’t your standard offering, but a DeLorean trip down memory lane featuring Pete Rock on the boards, and Jay-Z reminiscing on the “good old days.”

For the beat, Pete goes to Curtis Mayfield’s classic debut, Curtis, for “The Makings of You.” He uses Mayfield’s vocals for the intro, and loops the funk guitar led melody for the foundation. For bells and whistles, Pete includes the famous opening grunt adlibs from Syl Johnson’s “Different Strokes.” Finally, Charlie Wilson and Kid Cudi add subtle but recognizable background crooning to flesh out the song’s musicianship, delivering a lush palette of sounds for the emcees to rock over.

Kanye and Jay are drawn into nostalgic musings from different angles. West begins strong, rhyming on being inspired to deliver excellence by those who missed getting to his position (failed street rappers, emcees turned A&Rs, etc). Like many of Kanye’s G.O.O.D. Friday lyrics, there’s several lines of debauchery like ejaculating on a groupie’s face. But Mayfield’s lyrics on children also cause Kanye to think about the effects of unplanned pregnancies, and being haunted by “the ghosts of kids that I never had.”

“I never understood Planned Parenthood, ’cause I never met anyone that planned to be a parent in the hood,” Kanye rhymes. “Taking refills of that Plan B pill/ Another shorty that won’t make it to the family will.”

In his second verse, ‘Ye briefly goes back to his tawdry ways when discussing how he and a friend obtained two black women with the names of “white bitches.” Overall, Kanye uses the verse to indicate that not only is he hot again from a publicity standpoint, but that there’s music to back it up (“So next time you see me in your Fallopian/ Know the jewelry’s Egyptian/ Know the hunger’s Ethiopian”). As with most of us, and definitely Kanye West, the biggest potential obstacle is the face in the mirror.

 ”In the mirror where I see my only enemy/ Your life’s cursed?/ Oh, mine’s an obscenity.”

The music has a special meaning for Jay-Z, considering it’s his “Mama’s shit.”  He sets the era by noting his household was littered by Afros, marijuana sticks, Bally shoes, and Ballantine Ale. Jay only briefly mentions his drug-dealing past. Instead, the verse is really an homage to his mother Gloria. He praises her strength in the face of the criticism she endured from the religious (“Virgin Marys tried to judge her/ I’m like where the Madonnas now?”). The end result was a child that became a “warrior,” and Jay promises that no one will ever take away their joy.

Early reports suggest this song may be a part of the Kanye West/Jay-Z album Watch the Throne. Both artists have been very instrumental in setting trends in Hip-Hop. Kanye, for example, played a hand in the neo-electro phase mainstream Hip-Hop is now enamored with. Don’t be surprised if within the year the next “retro” phrase results in a return to music like this.

KANYE WEST X JAY-Z X PETE ROCK X CHARLIE WILSON X KID CUDI ” THE JOY”

DOWNLOAD LINK

 

 

Kid Cudi on Hip-Hop: “I’m just over rapping…”

Posted: October 28, 2010 in Music News
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Kid Cudi gave a definitive statement on his future creative direction by proclaiming that rapping gives him no further enjoyment.

Cudi, who has begun the promotional rounds for his sophomore project Man On the Moon II: The Legend of Mr. Rager, explained that his main musical goal is learning how to play the guitar. While he did drop a recent verse on Kanye’s G.O.O.D. Friday track “Christian Dior Denim Flow,” Cudi revealed that these days he only gets excited about performing Hip-Hop music when he’s asked  to create singing hooks.

“I’m just over rapping. I don’t get any fulfillment out of it anymore,” Cudi told MTV News. “I really don’t get any fulfillment out of writing a 16. That’s why you never really hear me on Kanye joints like that…I’m more passionate when he be like ‘yo Cudi come up with a hook!’ Because he asks me to put verses down and I’ll try to procrastinate or disappear or something. I get more fulfillment now out of singing and learning to play the guitar. That’s my newfound love; I just never thought I could play an instrument.”

Following his next solo, Cudi will front a new rock band called the Wizards. He will also work extensively on fellow Cleveland native Chip tha Ripper’s next album.

Man On the Moon II: The Legend of Mr. Rager will be released on November 9.

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Pretty ironic to hear Cudi losing hsi passion for emceeing the same week that Drake rediscovered his. I appreciate the honesty from Cudi. One listen to his mumbling verse on “Christian Dior Denim Flow” is strong confirmation that his heart isn’t in straight Hip-Hop. I wonder if it ever was.

Personally, I don’t care much for Cudi’s singing voice either. But with the right production and melodies it can come off well, as evidenced by a handful of songs on Man On the Moon, Jay-Z’s “Already Home,” and Kanye’s Runaway film. Luckily, no one looks at him as a straight emcee, so he won’t have to worry about possibly alienating any of his fans by going full-blown into other genres.

Overall, Kid Cudi remains a valuable member of the G.O.O.D. Music team. All that’s really missing now from the label is a first lady.

iTunes Releases Tracklist for Kanye’s My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy

Posted: October 23, 2010 in Music News
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A tracklist for Kanye West’s highly-anticipated fifth album, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, has appeared this evening on iTunes.

The 12 track album features much of the Kanye’s G.O.O.D. Music team (Kid Cudi, Pusha T, Cyhi da Prynce), and others such as Jay-Z, Nicki Minaj, and Raekwon.

Many of the notable selections from the popular G.O.O.D. Friday series, such as “Monster,” “So Appalled,” and “Devil In a New Dress,”  reappear on the listing.

iTunes does allow for error, advising pre-order buyers that the listed songs “are subject to change without notice and the final product received may differ.”

My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy drops on November 22. The iTunes tracklist can be viewed below.

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Uh oh, maybe G.O.O.D. Friday isn’t the great idea we all thought it was. I, like many, was under the assumption that those songs were essentially throwaways that wouldn’t have seen the light of day. This tracklist says otherwise, because four of those tracks appear here. And another four were heard through leaks and single drops. Essentially, this would mean an album with five different cover variations, only has three songs new songs!

But before we declare this album a waste of time, that iTunes disclaimer let’s us know this “tracklist” is far from official. In fact, it’s likely just a shot in the dark iTunes did based on the songs that have leaked. No way would Kanye, let alone Def Jam, who’s banking on this LP being a smash, let this album come out with 80% of the material being dated.

So rest easy tonight, Kanye fans. The chance of this tracklist being official is just as likely as Detox dropping this year.

G.O.O.D. Friday/Saturday 10/2/10: Kanye & Friends Mix High-End Fashion and Women

Posted: October 3, 2010 in Music News
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Kanye West couldn’t stay away. G.O.O.D. Friday may have come on Saturday afternoon, but that’s much better than West’s earlier statement that he would be canceling this week’s installment due to album leaks. For October’s first track, West is joined by a few singers (John Legend, Leslie), two spitters (Pusha T, Lloyd Banks), and an experimental emcee (Kid Cudi) for “Christian Dior Denim Flow,” an ode to the enraptured intoxication that can only be done to a man by a female.

The track is introduced via a acapella rendering of the street-corner styled chorus, which seamlessly blends the voices of John Legend, Kid Cudi and Ryan Leslie. Subdued string instruments followed by a screwed refrain (“All the models to the floor right now!”) and rolling drums serve as Kanye West’s introduction. He plays with his vocals for his verse, using distortion to give his voice the feeling that it’s coming out a fading radio signal. The rhyme is pointedly hedonistic, and heavy on name-dropping as ‘Ye makes his desire known for several models and socialites.

Pusha T carries Kanye’s theme for a few bars before discarding it for more personal and creative musings. He notes the recent huge look he got performing “Runaway” at the VMAs (“Oh you was watching/Who the fuck wasn’t?/Me skip across that stage in five dozens…”). Kanye’s zone with G.O.O.D. Friday is also apparently rubbing off on his team, as Pusha boldly declares his G.O.O.D. Music family as the leaders of Hip-Hop music (“Let’s be clear and let’s be fair/The best thing is music is being offered here/It’s a round table full of bosses here…”).

An extended drum interlude precedes Ryan Leslie’s verse, which takes aim at a female who’s lost her soul in the midst of the glamour and glitz. With Leslie’s attachment to various women over the years, it’s possible that the verse is a composite of several of them (“I done seen drugs and money run the whole game/A good girl, lost in the city life…”).

Lloyd Banks storms in right after with arguably the song’s best verse. Unlike the others, he takes a keener eye in turning the criticism to himself instead of focusing on the track’s female adversary theme. Regarding his work, Banks admits that for a significant stretch he was unfocused.

“Nigga make some money before you comment/Meant to snap awhile ago but who knows where the time went,” Banks rapped. “Probably dime chicks, whips what a pity/Now I’m back/Like a nine milli, run New York City.”

Banks’ flow is the sharpest out of all the emcees. It’s impressive that he was able to work a faster flow over the slower drum arrangements of song, as he didn’t have the luxury of the quicker drum kick heard on Kanye’s opening verse.

The only noticeable misstep here was placing Kid Cudi in the closer position after Lloyd Banks. Cudi is not lyrical, but does well in incorporating melody as a staple of his rhyme schemes. But here, he comes off underwhelming in how he approaches the beat after someone like Banks. The contrast is very glaring in hearing Cudi mumble through several bars. It’s possible he wouldn’t have fell flat if he had been placed in the middle.

That aside, fans have once again been blessed with an album-quality track for free. There’s live instrumentation, electronic effects, soul/gospel-tinged crooning, and Hip-Hop drums. Whatever you fell in love with Kanye for, he’s brining all those influences together on these G.O.O.D. Friday releases. Pusha T said on the song that this is the best thing going in music today, and you’d be hard-pressed to argue with him at this point.

Until next week Friday… or Saturday.

Kanye West feat. Pusha T, John Legend, Ryan Leslie, and Kid Cudi “Christian Dior Denim Flow”

CDQ LINK

Wale on Kid Cudi: “This is why you gotta keep your circle small.”

Posted: September 21, 2010 in Music News
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Despite Kid Cudi public disparaging him as a “wack” emcee, Wale is choosing not to flame the potential beef with similar inflammatory comments.

Wale, who last weekend celebrated his 26th birthday in his native D.C., defended the use of Cudi’s name in his “Thank You Freestyle”. The line was not intended as a diss, and Wale is dumbfounded as to why his former friend took offense.

“It’s rap music. There wasn’t no malice it in,” Wale explained on DJ Drama’s Shade 45 show. “It is what it is. It’s a line! That’s what rappers do…nine out of 10 rappers wouldn’t take that as a diss…As I’m growing as a man and an artist I’m seeing what you have to do and how you have to carry yourself. [This is why] you gotta keep your circle small.”

In his Complex magazine interview, Cudi implied that Wale is angry at his G.O.O.D. Music family because Kanye West allegedly refused to give him beats. Wale countered that he’s not pressed for an all-star production lineup because of his Roc Nation deal.

“I don’t recall making too much of an effort to work with anybody,” Wale said. “I’m signed to Roc Nation. There’s great producers [there] like Science. I  got my guys from D.C., BKS. It ain’t really all that deep. This ain’t 2001 where the producer was the end-all, be-all. People know I’m a hothead, I’ve been a hothead before. But it’s a change of scenery now. It’s the new D.C.”

In 2008 and 2009, Wale and Kid Cudi were very close friends. The reason behind their falling out has never been disclosed by either emcee.

At press time, neither man has spoken directly with each other. 

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I met Wale back in 2008, right after he had signed his deal with Interscope. He was very approachable and open about his career. I don’t have a bad word to say about the man. I haven’t had the opportunity to meet Cudi yet.

Even so, I find it very amusing for Cudi of all people to refer to another emcee as a “simple ass rapper.” I know some people swear by his debut Man on the Moon. But for me it was a difficult listen to get through because Cudi doesn’t stand out lyrically as an emcee, nor is he a good singer. That Complex interview leads me to believe that by running with Kanye, he’s gotten way too cocky and arrogant. Or, as Wale said on his Twitter, it could have just been the cocaine talking.

Either way, Wale’s move to ignore Cudi makes sense. I’m usually for an emcee responding lyrically to any disputes, especially one that challenges his or her merits as an artist. But does anyone really want to hear a Wale-Cudi batttle?

Didn’t think so.

Kid Cudi Blasts Wale as a “Simple-Ass Rapper,” Opens Up About Cocaine Abuse

Posted: September 17, 2010 in Music News
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Kid Cudi once considered Wale a good friend. But that former good will appears to have evaporated following the Cleveland rapper’s diatribe on Wale’s merits as an artist.

Cudi explained that he was insulted by a recent Wale article where the DC native used a sports analogy to make a comparison between them. In Cudi’s view, he has no peers.

“Did you see that Wale interview that he just did, comparing us to sports? Let me clear this up: I’m incomparable to anybody,” Cudi declared in an interview with Complex magazine. “I don’t care how people take that. No one can compete with me. I’m unfuckwittable; no one can knock me off my shit. I’m an unstoppable force, I’m a bullet. My trajectory is to the sky. Niggas got to do something really spectacular to fuck with me and my realm, and niggas be so bitter that you hear it in their voice.”

Once good friends, the first inklings of an issue between the pair happened early last year. In an interview, Wale cryptically implied that Cudi had “changed” musically following the success of his “Day and Night” single. The accusation hurt Cudi deeply, and was one of the reasons for his brief retirement that was announced in March 2009.

“One of the only homies I got in this game, Wale, is worried about me ’cause of shit he hears,” Cudi said last year in his retirement blog announcement. ”Like WTF? Who can say I’m being Hollywood?”

Today, Cudi has his own criticism of Wale’s skills as an emcee. He was referenced on Wale’s “Thank You Freestyle,” due to Cudi’s incident where he struck a fan (“Throwin’ round wallets like the dude that Cudi hit”). While not a diss, Cudi used the line as further proof that Wale is not on his level as an emcee.

“It wasn’t a shot, it’s just a simple-ass rhyme by a simple-ass rapper. You can’t let that shit faze you,” he said. “That’s one of those raps that just shows the world that you wack. Why would you even use that as a metaphor? Everybody think they Hov. Niggas ain’t got the magic like they think they do; there’s only a couple of wizards in this game. I’m a wizard and I know it.”

Cudi theorizes Wale has resentment towards him due to G.O.O.D. Music head Kanye West refusing to give him beats. Cudi claimed the refusal was not personal, but an example that Wale’s rhymes don’t meet the critical standards needed for West’s production. Furthermore,  Cudi says his new outspokenness is due in part to receiving unprovoked attacks from Wale and others since his debut.

“Then people like Wale get mad that ‘Ye ain’t give him no beats—’Ye ain’t give you no beats because we ain’t fucking with your raps. It’s not a conspiracy theory,” Cudi stated. “We don’t fuck with you musically, so we’re not going to provide music for you. The shit is a service, it’s a quality of a certain standard. Niggas are just so thirsty it’s ridiculous. I’ve been eating humble pie forever, and people still call me an asshole. These people don’t know my fucking life—now I’m going to give them something to talk about.”

In June, Kid Cudi was arrested for cocaine possession. The rapper did not deny his substance abuse issue, even going as far to apologize to fans at concerts. He claims the addiction was initially fueled as help to get through interviews and other media requirements.

“I started doing cocaine to get through interviews, ’cause people wanted to know a lot about my personal life and I wasn’t prepared for a 60 Minutes interview every time,” he explained. “Doing bumps I was able to get through the day, but then I would smoke weed to calm me down—it was the only way I could get through the day without people noticing I was doing it.”

With the support of his G.O.O.D. Music family and self-determination, Cudi says he was able to beat the habit. Also, he cites non-label members like Lupe Fiasco and Noreaga as emcees that expressed  genuine love and support.

“Every time I see that man [Lupe Fiasco], it’s nothing but love—I saw him a little after it, and he was like ‘I’m worried about you, man, just checking in,’” Cudi detailed. “He’s somebody who I know really genuinely gives a fuck. Noreaga also checked in…No more blow. People do drugs to camouflage emotions and run away from their problems. Now I’m going to deal with certain things as they come, prioritize shit—man up, so to speak.”

Cudi’s next album, Man on the Moon II: The Legend of Mr. Rager, is scheduled for a November 9 release.

At press time, Wale’s only response has been a direct challenge through Twitter.

“Niggas lettin’ that liquid cocaine get to them…..let’s go then,” he Tweeted.

 The entire Complex interview can be read HERE.