Kid Cudi

Kid Cudi has mostly remained a controversial figure, just as many of his contemporary rappers have been. He is a very emotional person and that reflects in his music.

His relationship with Kanye West has witnessed both ups and downs. Kid respected Kanye as an elder brother, as he introduced Kid to national fame. However, they have had their own episodes of feuds, though they have always reconciled quickly, out of the respect for each other.

Kudi is said to have dated attorney Jamie Baratta, in 2009. However, they broke up in 2012.

Kid Cudi was born Scott Ramon Seguro Mescudi in Cleveland, Ohio, on January 30, 1984. He grew up in a middle class household and was the youngest of the four children in the family. His mother, Elsie Harriet, worked as a middle-school teacher, and his father, Lindberg Styles Mescudi, was a house painter and a war veteran.

Kid had a difficult childhood as his parents fought over petty issues. His father died of cancer when Kid was 11 years old. This had a serious impact on his psyche, but music turned out to be an effective savior. However, the death of his father plunged him into depression.

Kid attended ‘Shaker Heights High School’ and was then transferred to ‘Solon High School.’ While he was fairly disciplined in the initial years, he turned into an aggressive person, as he approached his senior years. He started getting into fights and was expelled from school for threatening to punch the principal. However, he managed to join the ‘University of Toledo’ as a film student, though he dropped out after a year.

While he loved music, he was not very keen on making a career out of it, and desired to be a filmmaker. His fractured police record prevented him from joining the navy.

He did odd jobs initially, following which, he decided to make a career in music. Upon finishing high school, he started rapping for fun.

Kanye West has been known to be the mentor for many new artists, and he hired Kid to work on his album ‘808s & Heartbreak.’ Kid worked on the album’s singles, such as ‘Welcome to Heartbreak’ and ‘Heartless,’ as a co-writer and vocalist. The album became Kanye’s most successful so far, and Kid was exposed to an early fame.

Leading magazines, such as ‘Rolling Stone’ and ‘The Source’ regarded him as the artist to look out for, and he also had the opportunity to work on Jay-Z’s album ‘The Blueprint 3.’ The 2008 ‘MTV Video Music Awards’ was his first brush with mainstream limelight, and the highly talented artist found himself working with Kanye’s label, ‘GOOD Music.’

Following his initial success, Kid appeared alongside many artists, such as Solange and Snoop Dogg. He released a song ‘Sky Might Fall’ for the teaser soundtrack of the film ‘Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen.’

In September 2009, his debut, ‘Man on the Moon: The End of Day,’ was released to a roaring success and sold more than a million copies in its very first week. The album was among the top five of many music charts. Soon, Kid announced his upcoming collaborations with various artists, such as Snoop Dogg, Clipse, 50 Cent and Travis Baker.

His second album, ‘Man on the Moon II: The Legend of Mr. Rager,’ was released in November 2010. The lead single, titled ‘Erase Me,’ was done in collaboration with Kanye West and was a success. His stint with Kanye continued for a couple of more years, during which the duo appeared in Kanye’s singles and in his collaborative album with Jay-Z, ‘Watch the Throne.’