Fresh off the release of Kid Cudi’s The Boy Who Flew to the Moon (Vol. 1) compilation, fans are getting another chance to reflect on all that Cudi has accomplished over the past 14 years with the upcoming streaming release of his 2008 mixtape A Kid Named Cudi.
Ahead of the tape’s long-awaited streaming arrival this Friday, Cudi unveiled new cover art for the project, featuring a black-and-white photo captured by Mel D. Cole and graffiti graphics crafted by @crashone.
Per Cudi, the photo was taken on Sept. 22, 2008, “right before my life changed forever.”
Shortly after Monday’s reveal, Cudi responded to a fan’s assessment that the original cover was “too iconic,” informing the larger Cudiverse community that he actually “never liked” it. Furthermore, Cudi pointed out, some listeners remain fixated on the past in a “sad” way.
“This photo is as equally if not more iconic. Ur bogus,” Cudi said.
Bogus stuck-in-the-past-isms aside, 2022 has been a restlessly prolific time for Cudi and his fans. The back-to-back The Boy Who Flew to the Moon and A Kid Named Cudi rollouts will be followed mere weeks later by the kickoff of Cudi’s To the Moon worldwide tour, the Moon Man’s Landing festival in Cleveland, and the Netflix debut of Entergalactic.
As for additional cover art matters, the visual facet of any given artist’s rollout process is always a key element. One could argue, however, that it’s been a particularly importance aspect of the larger Cudi catalog, including with the franchise-reviving Man on the Moon III: The Chosen in 2020. Surrounding the album’s release, artist Sam Spratt spoke with Complex about the process behind the narratively driven cover art for Cudi’s Passion, Pain & Demon Slayin’ follow-up. Revisit that here.