The cerebral, forward-thinking producer, singer, and rapper Kid Cudi is known for his creativity, insight, and vulnerability. Cudi isn’t afraid to speak his mind, even if that means letting the world be privy to some of his mental health battles and professional difficulties.
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Personal life aside, Cudi is a masterful musician. Ever since he rocketed to fame thanks to his smash single, “Day ‘N’ Nite,” Cudi has been a sought-after lyricist and beatmaker. But with all that to his name, some might wonder what the multi-time Grammy Award-winner has to say about life outside his songs and media headlines.
[RELATED: Top 10 Kid Cudi Songs]
These are the 20 best quotes from the 39-year-old Cleveland-born songwriter and performer.
1. “My background is not typical hip-hop. I didn’t grow up in the projects. I grew up in a single-family home in a middle-class suburb. That doesn’t mean I didn’t experience hardship, but to me it’s not about that, it’s about the future and where we are trying to take it.”
2. “If you’re not doing what everyone else is doing then you’re going to be misunderstood. People are going to wonder why you’re trying to be different; it’s just a natural instinct.
3. “There was a moment in time where I was really focused on the Navy and I followed through with it—I passed the test. I was happy with myself because I was accomplishing something and I was really working towards a goal. That was the first true thing I invested my energy in.”
4. “I’m very close with my family, so my mom is part of my entourage.”
5. “I just want to learn and I want to grow. I want to consume as much information as possible. I want to be great.”
6. “Once I accomplish one thing and I’m satisfied, I try something else. I may be 50 and doing something totally outside of music and acting. Maybe I’ll become a kindergarten teacher.”
7. “These things were happening in my life where I was like, ‘Man, I wish my pops was here to see this.’ I never had those thoughts before fame, when my life was just a regular life. I wasn’t saying, ‘I wish my dad could be around and see me working at Applebee’s.'”
8. “My life is like a speeding bullet that just hasn’t hit the target yet.”
9. “The world that I am coming from, hip-hop, is so regurgitated and repetitive that some people are used to that and they don’t want change, they don’t like change. And I get that, that’s cool. Luckily for me, I’m confident in myself as an artist where I can do what I want, and as long as I’m cool with it, I’m cool with it.”
10. “My whole thing is just to put out positive messages in the music, give people something that can change their lives.”
11. “I have all these revelations as I’m writing. Each song is like a chapter of my diary.”
12. “Some people just don’t want to see change, but thankfully there are a lot of people more optimistic for something new in music, even with the bigger picture like with Obama getting elected.”
13. “In America, we’re kind of lazy. But in New York, it’s one of those places where you see the majority of people hustling. If you can make it in New York, you can make it anywhere.”
14. “I’m not that big a fan of sampling. But I feel like if I’m going to do it, I’m going to do it to where it’s more of a reimagining of a track. The songs that I do utilize samples on, most of it you wouldn’t even be able to tell what it was unless I told you.”
15. “I like being a consumer. I’ll do collabs with brands I like, only because I would like something free to wear. But I don’t want people to dress like me, which is what you’re asking when you create a brand.”
16. “I’ve always been ahead of the curve when it came to trying new stuff in the underground scene.”
17. “The tour bus is always fun, and there’s plenty of time to watch movies. Actually, Kanye introduced me to the movie Step Brothers. We were sitting there, watching it and clowning around—it was so funny, man.”
18. “I used to take Sharpies and draw on my pillowcases, and then go to sleep on them and wake up with red marker from the drool all on my face.”
19. “I’ve always felt that because I’m from Cleveland, which isn’t recognized as a place for hip-hop, I needed to step it up if I wanted to make myself known.”
20. “I’m trying to change the world.”
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