According to Zane Lowe, this version of Kid Cudi is “a reenergized Cudi.” That comes from the legendary interviewer’s latest sit-down with Cleveland’s very own Mr. Rager. The 39-year-old multi-talent just dropped his 11th project INSANO on January 12. It looks to be another top 10-worthy release on the Billboard Hot 200 with nearly 50,000 copies sold. While the LP was the main reason for Lowe to chat with Cudi. However, there was another interesting nugget that the two spoke about. The hitmaker revealed how he and Lupe Fiasco’s dislike for one another started.
HipHopDX highlighted that it all began in 2008. Before Cudi got his music career going, he was an employee at the BAPE store in New York. Lupe Fiasco happened to be shopping there one day and his co-workers were juiced to see him. The opposite could be said about Cudi. “[I] Stayed down the stairs, waited until he left. [My colleagues] were like, ‘What you down here for?’” He explained, “‘Yo bro, if I get famous one day, I don’t ever want this n**** saying like, ‘He sold me clothes. You my son!’ We can’t have that!’”
Sure enough, his hunch was correct. Even though Cudi avoided that interaction, Lupe still has it out for him. “I was right, I was onto something. I sensed something in the universe.” Things began to escalate in 2014 when they went back and forth on Twitter over Lupe charging fans $500 for a personalized verse. Cudi then called that out for seeming “a bit sketch,” according to HipHopDX. If you would like to fast-forward to that portion of the interview, start watching around the 34:50 mark.
What are your thoughts on Kid Cudi’s interview with Zane Lowe and the conversation about the beef with Lupe Fiasco? Do you think they will ever have mutual respect for one another? Are you still rocking with INSANO? If so what tracks did you pull from the album and why? We would like to hear what you have to say about all of this. With that in mind, be sure to leave all of your hottest takes in the comments section below. Additionally, always keep it locked in with HNHH for all of the latest news surrounding Kid Cudi and Lupe Fiasco. Finally, stay with us for everything else going on around the music world.
Fresh from the release of his 11th studio album “INSANO”, Kid Cudi invites Zane Lowe into his home to discuss the project, his retirement from music, relationship with Ye, and more. Speaking on “INSANO” Cudi tells Zane, “I think that this album is a triumph, because I’ve seen a lot of people saying, yo, you sound like you can feel the happiness in the music. You can feel the joy radiating. Every note, every verse. There’s no Kid Cudi album that sounds like this. Can you imagine? 11 albums, and I was able to still do something new.”
As he nears his 40th birthday, this wide-ranging conversation sees Cudi reflect on his career, how he’s inspired the next generation of rappers and why he loves working with Lil Yachty.
When soeaking about his relationship with ‘Ye, Cudi says, “It’s usually one person does something where the other one has to defend themselves, but usually you like to keep these things private, but sometimes they can come out.” He added, “I think in my situation it’s a little bit more complicated. Me personally, I just pray on it and walking the light and the new Scott is not angry at anyone. The new Scott doesn’t have beef with anyone, and I just try to focus on that.”
INSANO is the newest album from Kid Cudi. His previous release was 2022’s Entergalactic which was the soundtrack for his Netflix film of the same name. He also released a greatest hits compilation and re-released his first mixtape on streaming services. As far as his listeners are concerned, the last album of his that “counted” released in 2020. Cudi’s life had changed for the better in the past four years. Listeners were looking forward to seeing if the music reflected these changes. The features on this new album include some people he has worked with previously and some first-time collaborations. In this list, we’ll be discussing his chemistry with other artists on this album and how the song came out overall too.
This is the first of two features Travis Scott has on Kid Cudi’s INSANO. The two of them have made several songs together in the past. One of their biggest songs, “The Scotts,” was their debut single as a duo of the same name. However, the collab album has yet to release.
Their track on Cudi’s latest album, “GET OFF ME” showcases them on a haunting trap beat. Cudi attacks the track with energy before a vocal filter is added to his voice as he transitions into a more relaxed delivery. Travis uses a fitting flow in the song but doesn’t offer anything his listeners haven’t heard before. Things get a little more interesting on the track’s second half, where the duo trade verses with ad-libs and auto-tune-soaked vocals. These effects match the space-like atmosphere of the song well.
“WOW” (With A$AP Rocky)
Kid Cudi brought in another artist familiar with putting psychedelic elements in their music for this INSANO track. Kid Cudi and ASAP Rocky have a few songs together already. Their most recent one was actually on Rocky’s last album, 2018’s Testing. Their latest track, “WOW,” has a certain relaxed feeling to it as the melodic keys are subdued but Cudi’s vocals are still quite prominent. The hook isn’t the most elaborate but it is catchy. Rocky’s verse is effortless as expected as he smoothly flows over the production. He uses a rap-sung delivery in this portion, much like the one Cudi uses throughout the whole song.
“TOO DAMN HIGH” (With Lil Yachty)
Lil Yachty’s last album was a large departure from his previous music and was met with a myriad of reactions. In this song, the biggest moment of his guest verse comes at the beginning as he uses a unique vibrato technique that his listeners have previously heard. Outside of this opening, his verse unfortunately offered no redeeming factors to the already mediocre song.
“AT THE PARTY” (With Pharrell Williams & Travis Scott)
When this song from INSANO was announced, Kid Cudi listeners were quite excited. With features from two artists he had already made very well-received songs with, they were sure this would be a highlight. As expected, Pharrell produced the track. The pace of it is slower than some probably expected which allows for all the sounds he implemented to be heard with ease. A very fitting space-like melody is at the forefront with other otherworldly noises popping in and out. Pharrell handles the hook with a subdued delivery that serves as the connecting thread between the tales of partying Cudi and Travis tell. Cudi weaves in some bars about his positive mental state while Travis focuses on a flow switch while keeping his subject matter consistent.
“X & CUD” (With XXXTentacion)
This is one of the most divisive songs Kid Cudi put on INSANO. Posthumous verses are already something listeners have very strong opinions on and they must be handled with respect. In this case, many listeners feel like the song should have never been made. It does not feature a posthumous verse, but it does sample the song “Orlando.” X released this song in 2017 on his album 17. Considering how prominent the elements from the original song are in Cudi’s version, calling this a “remix” may have been more fitting but likely equally panned.
“SEVEN” (With Lil Wayne)
Lil Wayne is a GOAT and seeing his name on the tracklist for Kid Cudi’s INSANO got many excited. It also made people wonder which “version” of Wayne would be appearing. Listeners know he can do verses filled with double and triple entendres and other creative word gymnastics. They also know sometimes he will go the route of a melodic rap verse and this is what he did on this song. His appearance was short and while it had a very small amount of wordplay, it was nothing that could compare to some of his other recent prime-form verses.
Kid Cudi turns down the hype on this track from INSANO. His first verse here is more in line with the introspective lyrics people have praised him for across the years. Thug’s verse is very short and while it does have a nice flow, it seems to be a large departure from the route Cudi took. However, the two trade bars on the second portion of the song and this is where they truly get on the same page. Their melodic flows mirror each other well with some background vocalizations from Cudi enhancing the guitar like melody that plays throughout the whole song.
What was your favorite feature from Kid Cudi’s INSANO album? Let us know in the comments section.
The Kid Cudi and Kanye West bromance is back on. The duo reunited in person after online chatter, mostly by Ye, strained their relationship in recent years.
Taking it further, Ye hit his Instagram story to share a screenshot of the single “Electrowavebaby” from the Insano album. Seemingly a salute to his favorite in the collection of songs.
The 2024 calendar isn’t even two full weeks in and already, we’ve got rap beef cooking on the horizon — maybe.
Fans pressing play on Kid Cudi’s new album Insano are pretty convinced that there is, as line from guest rapper ASAP Rocky on “WOW” sounds like it could be referring to Drake. As true rap beef lore heads may remember, Drake has feuded with both fellow blog-era rappers as often as he’s collaborated with them, so there could be a little bit of merit to the speculation.
In his verse on the song, Rocky raps, “These n***as can’t stomach me, gotta go get a mandrake.” Fans have interpreted this as a clever way to sneak Drake’s name into the line, which references a natural remedy for stomach problems. It could also be reference to Drake’s 2023 admission that he’s taking time off to deal with a stomach issue. You can hear the song for yourself above.
i love ASAP ROCKY for this,like literally bro. this double entendre is way crazy. getting a mandrake that would protect the stomach,but again getting a man Drake who’s been dissing him and Riri. Asap here killed it and this is why I love lyrical geniuses,they entertain me pic.twitter.com/BDAu12AQVp
Drake dropping Rocky’s name since 2018. His fans: Asap Rocky mentions “mandrake “ Drake fans: He’s so desperate Only one of those 2 men is bothered by the other, and it’s not Rocky.
Rocky citing himself as the source of Drake’s tummy troubles might be a nod to their shared dating history; Drake dated Rocky’s current partner Rihanna in 2016, however, she moved on pretty quickly. And while Drake insists he’s over it — most recently, on his For All The Dogs song “Fear Of Heights” — the fact that he keeps talking about it undercuts his argument pretty thoroughly.
(Drake also notably had a back and forth with Cudi after the Cleveland rapper appeared to shade him on Twitter in 2015. Drake later dissed him on “Two Birds, One Stone,” then collaborated with him on Certified Lover Boy. Basically, rap is wrestling, all this is kayfabe, and it’s hilarious that people keep taking these artists seriously.)
In any event, there’s probably a certain amount of good-natured gamesmanship going on here; and we’ll probably see Drake and ASAP on each other’s music at some point in the future. In the meantime, it’s fun to speculate (for some people) about when and how Drake will respond.
With Kid Cudi’s Insano still hours away from release, it might seem premature to start wondering when he’s planning to drop a deluxe edition of his ninth studio album, but then again, such is the world we live in these days. Fans are greedy and impatient — never a good combination — but the modern framework of the entertainment industry has been set up to feed these vices… and as it turns out, Cudi is perfectly willing to oblige them as well.
Last night, the Cleveland rapper revealed his plans for the deluxe edition of the album, revealing some detail about its structure in the process. “The deluxe is basically another album,” he wrote. “There wont be 20 plus songs, but u get a nice amount.” And, of course, for those fans who just can’t wait another two years for a new project from the increasingly prolific Cudi, he offered the best news of all: “lookin to drop NEXT WEEK.”
The deluxe is basically another album. There wont be 20 plus songs, but u get a nice amount lookin to drop NEXT WEEK
Of course, Kid Cudi isn’t the first rapper to drop a “deluxe” project a week after the original. In 2017, Future dropped his fifth and sixth albums Future and Hndrxx within one week of each other, while in 2020, Lil Uzi Vert released Lil Uzi Vert Vs. The World 2 as the deluxe edition of Eternal Atake one week after EA.
Kid Cudi’s upcoming album Insano is one of Uproxx’s Most Anticipated Albums Of 2024, and this Friday, after months of anticipation, it’ll hit DSPs. Despite saying a few years ago that he was pondering retiring the Kid Cudi identity entirely, the Cleveland native rediscovered his creative drive, releasing the singles “Porsche Topless” and “At The Party” and pushing through unexpected delays to drop the album, which features ASAP Rocky, Lil Yachty, Pharrell Williams, Travis Scott, and more.
Unless something goes wrong, Cudi’s album should be hitting DSPs — including Apple Music, Spotify, and Tidal — at 12am EST/9pm PST on Friday (or Thursday, if you live on the West Coast). For more details about the release, see below:
Kid Cudi’s Insano Tracklist
1. “Often I Have These Dreamz” Feat. DJ Drama
2. “Keep Bouncin’”
3. “Get Off Me” Feat. Travis Scott
4. “Most Ain’t Dennis”
5. “Wow” Feat. A$AP Rocky
6. “ElectroWaveBaby”
7. “A Tale Of A Knight”
8. “Cud Life”
9. “Too Damn High” Feat. Lil Yachty
10. “Getcha Gone”
11. “At The Party” Feat. Travis Scott & Pharrell
12. “Mr. Coola”
13. “Freshie”
14. “Tortured”
15. “X & Cud” Feat. XXXTentacion
16. “Seven” Feat. Lil Wayne
17. “Funky Wizard Smoke”
18. “Rager Boyz” Feat. Young Thug
19. “Porsche Topless”
20. “Blue Sky”
21. “Hit The Streetz In My Nikes”
Kid Cudi’s Insano is out 1/12 via Republic Records. Find more information here.
After months of anticipation — and a few delays — Kid Cudi’s ninth studio album Insano will finally be released this Friday, January 12. With a tracklist featuring guest appearances from the likes of ASAP Rocky, DJ Drama, Lil Wayne, Lil Yachty, Pharrell Williams, Travis Scott, and Young Thug, the album follows 2022’s ambitious multimedia project Entergalactic and was preceded by the single “At The Party.” He’s also got a whole slew of further projects coming this year, including a memoir and book tour. So, when can you expect to be able to hit “play” on Cudi’s latest?
Unless something goes wrong, Cudi’s album should be hitting DSPs — including Apple Music, Spotify, and Tidal — at 12am EST/9pm PST on Friday (or Thursday, if you live on the West Coast). For more details about the release, see below:
Kid Cudi’s Insano Tracklist
1. “Often I Have These Dreamz” Feat. DJ Drama
2. “Keep Bouncin’”
3. “Get Off Me” Feat. Travis Scott
4. “Most Ain’t Dennis”
5. “Wow” Feat. A$AP Rocky
6. “ElectroWaveBaby”
7. “A Tale Of A Knight”
8. “Cud Life”
9. “Too Damn High” Feat. Lil Yachty
10. “Getcha Gone”
11. “At The Party” Feat. Travis Scott & Pharrell
12. “Mr. Coola”
13. “Freshie”
14. “Tortured”
15. “X & Cud” Feat. XXXTentacion
16. “Seven” Feat. Lil Wayne
17. “Funky Wizard Smoke”
18. “Rager Boyz” Feat. Young Thug
19. “Porsche Topless”
20. “Blue Sky”
21. “Hit The Streetz In My Nikes”
Kid Cudi’s Insano is out 1/12 via Republic Records. Find more information here.
Kid Cudi’s new Insano album is among Uproxx’s Most Anticipated of 2024, and thankfully fans won’t have to wait too long to hear it. Given that the rapper had originally pushed it back last September, a lot of updates have happened since.
Here’s everything to know.
Release Date
Kid Cudi’s Insano is out 1/12 via Republic Records. Find more information here.
Tracklist
1. “Often I Have These Dreamz” Feat. DJ Drama
2. “Keep Bouncin’”
3. “Get Off Me” Feat. Travis Scott
4. “Most Ain’t Dennis”
5. “Wow” Feat. A$AP Rocky
6. “ElectroWaveBaby”
7. “A Tale Of A Knight”
8. “Cud Life”
9. “Too Damn High” Feat. Lil Yachty
10. “Getcha Gone”
11. “At The Party” Feat. Travis Scott & Pharrell
12. “Mr. Coola”
13. “Freshie”
14. “Tortured”
15. “X & Cud” Feat. XXXTentacion
16. “Seven” Feat. Lil Wayne
17. “Funky Wizard Smoke”
18. “Rager Boyz” Feat. Young Thug
19. “Porsche Topless”
20. “Blue Sky”
21. “Hit The Streetz In My Nikes”
Singles
“Porsche Topless,” “At The Party,” and “Most Ain’t Dennis” have been released as early singles.
Features
Insano will have a bunch of features. Right now, Travis Scott, ASAP Rocky, Pharrell, Young Thug, Lil Wayne, DJ Drama, Lil Yachty, and XXXTentacion are included as collaborators. He has also teased a deluxe version, so there could be even more artists added.
Artwork
View the Insano cover art below.
Republic Records
Tour
Right now, Kid Cudi does not have any upcoming tour dates released. But he might in the future. A few days ago, he did confirm that there would be a world tour tied to the album that would start in June.
MoodBoi Luwie 
(@KiddLuwie) 
lookin to drop NEXT WEEK 
