Kid Cudi Takes Us Out of This World With 'Man On The Moon III: The Chosen'

The third and latest album in Kid Cudi’s Man On The Moon trilogy features the late Pop Smoke, Phoebe Bridgers, Skepta, and Trippie Redd. The record brings together Cudi’s vulnerable lyricism with his out-of-this-world instrumentals. It is not always that fans can expect Cudi to rap on a record, but when he does it really showcases his skills as a lyricist. This could be his most successful solo-album to date.

The production of the album includes appearances from Take a Daytrip, Nosaj Thing, Dot Da Genius, Plain Pat and more. Samples of Tame Impala, the 2010 film Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World and Tom Hanks in Cast Away can also be heard on the album.

Cudi has released 5 LPs in the last decade since the first Man On The Moon album (The End of Days, 2009). The proceeding album came out in 2010, and since Cudi has given us WZRD (2012), Indicud (2013), Satellite Flight: The Journey to Mother Moon (2014), Speedin’ Bullet 2 Heaven (2015), Passion, Pain & Demon Slayin’ (2016), and, most recently, his indefectible collaboration with Kanye West Kids See Ghosts in 2018. This year he released collaborations with Selena Gomez ('A Sweeter Place'), Travis Scott ('THE SCOTTS'), and Eminem ('The Adventures of Moon Man & Slim Shady'). He also released the solo song “Leader of the Delinquents”.

Alongside the album comes a short-film for ‘She Knows This’. With some pleasing visuals the video shows Cudi in an apartment getting waved, he then stumbles into a car which he races down an empty road only to get chased by police. He references his collaborative album with Kanye West at the end of the first verse - “Yeah, I'm reborn and my life is the shit, heaven (Go)”.

Travis Scott - fellow member and co-founder of The Scotts, has long admired Cudi and the impact he has had on his career (even down to his stage name). Despite many artists acknowledging Mescudi as one of the most culturally significant artists of the decade, his albums have received a fair bit of criticism. Although I would contend that this is due to Cudi’s sound being so ahead of its time.

The cadence of the record is significantly well-done as he takes the listener from the passionate ‘Tequila Shots’, to channeling the vulnerability of ‘Mr. Rager’ (one of his earlier songs from MOTM II and alter-ego). In Act One the tracks ‘Another Day’, ‘Tequila Shots’ and ‘She Knows This’ are largely influenced by the up-and-coming generation of rappers. ‘Show Out’ will certainly prove to be popular, with features from Skepta and a posthumous verse from highly regarded Pop Smoke.

The second act pulls us out of the darkness and brings a sense of peace with songs like ‘Lovin’ Me’ featuring Phoebe Bridgers.The 11th track - ‘Elsie’s Baby Boy (flashback)’ sees Cudi’s rock influence come through - sampling instrumentals from The Animals - House of the Rising Sun. He raps about his mum and how hard she worked for both of them; he apologises to her for getting in such a dark place and feeling that he had let her down. As the album rounds-off you hear an eerie child’s whisper say “to be continued…” which suggests we may be hearing more from Cudi fairly soon. Man on the Moon III: The Chosen is filled with minute details each time you listen, it looks as though this latest album might finally give Cudi the recognition he deserves.

Watch the video for 'She Knows This' below