‘Entergalactic’ Sees Kid Cudi Return to Earth With a Rocky Re-Entry
Kid Cudi carved out a space in the hip-hop game, but now he’s following a more established playbook. He made his name behind the mic, but now he’s pivoting to life in front of the camera and joining Ludacris, Method Man, Bad Bunny, and others as rappers who act. The stroke he suffered in rehab is behind him, and so is Kid’s Man on the Moon trilogy. With Entergalactic, Kid Cudi returns to earth, though re-entry gets a bit rocky.
‘Entergalactic’ sees Kid Cudi launch from the moon with his skills intact
Kid firmly established himself as a strong MC and skilled producer with his 2009 debut Man on the Moon: The End of Day. He immediately reminds listeners of his skills on the knobs with the atmospheric “Entergalactic Theme.”
“Do What I Want” is where the album takes off. The layered beat, coupled with a laconic delivery, hammers home the sentiment Kid can do what he wants (including putting what amounts to an ambient song, “Angel,” on a hip-hop album).
“Willing to Trust” sees Kid lay himself bare. He drops lines such as “I don’t want you to go;” “Sincerely yours forevermore;” “Teach me what I should know” with “Oh take control of me” uttered underneath. Cudi sounds as positive as ever: Heartfelt platitudes such as “All this time, I never thought I’d find / Some girl that I can call mine” float in the background as the song morphs from a slightly off-kilter beginning to a tender ballad by the end of the song.
If “Willing to Trust” is the emotional centerpiece, “Can’t Believe It” is Entergalactic’s most arresting track. It grabs the listener with a funhouse synth line and low-end heavy beat; 2 Chainz capably subs in to share MC duties.
Still, “Can’t Believe It” might feel like the strongest puncher because almost everything that comes later fails to retain the momentum of the album’s first half.
The album’s second half drags as Kid Cudi loses momentum
If the heartfelt lyrics from the album’s first half didn’t make it clear, Kid Cudi wants to settle down and start a family. With its delicate strings and emotionally bare lyrics about heartbreak and obsession, the ballad “Maybe So” is the emotional heart of the album. Unfortunately, the album loses steam soon after.
“Can’t Shake Her” comes in with a simple yet infectious swirl of rhythmic elements, but the lyrics are pedestrian diary entries. It’s a letdown after a slew of songs that flex Kid’s vocal talents and rapping skills.
“She’s Looking for Me” is flat and overly wordy (the bridge is just Kid repeating “why” for almost 30 seconds), which takes away from what is a solid musical track. The boring “My Drug” is a anchor when it feels like the album should be soaring. As a companion to the Netflix movie of the same name, the album needs to fit the visual narrative, but Entergalactic the album loses the plot halfway from Kid Cudi’s journey from the moon.
‘Entergalactic’ is straightforward and has its moments but it’s not Kid Cudi’s best effort
Past Kid Cudi albums were darkly introspective, especially the Man on the Moon trilogy. Entergalactic is earthbound, present, and — dare we say — positive. “Finally got my head right, it’s a new me,” he raps on “New Mode.”
The highlights aren’t hard to find, especially on the breezy first half of the album when most of the tracks don’t reach three minutes. At roughly 45 minutes long, Entergalactic is short for a Kid Cudi album, but it feels longer since it drags itself to the finish line.
Entergalactic is the most straightforward Kid album. The ‘Man on the Moon’ trilogy was a missive from deep inside his psyche; reality viewed 239,000 miles from behind his eyes. Entergalactic is direct, succinct, clear, and approachable. It’s Cudi’s ‘Wish You Were Here.’ It’s not necessarily his best work, but it’s an album non-fans find easily accessible.
- Runtime: 45:44 (including streaming bonus track)
- Songs on Repeat: “Do What I Want,” “Can’t Believe It (feat. 2 Chainz),” “Maybe So”
- Songs to Skip: “She’s Lookin’ For Me,” “My Drug”
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