Analysis essay

Julian Miller

Septemeber 10, 2013

Mr. Dilbeck

Composition I

Analysis essay

            In 2009, recording artist Scott Ramon Seguro Mescudi (A.K.A) Kid Cudi released his debut album “Man on the Moon: The End of Day” which brought a new style and influence to modern hip hop culture. The 15 track album hosted a gloomy but meaningful concept that seamlessly shifts from topics like loneliness, depression, drugs and dreams to more uplifting topics such as happiness, family, achieving ambitions and loving life. The sing song style of the album helps make it memorable and gives it an airy, enchanting feeling that makes the listener dive deep into flawless synthesis of beats and lyrics. Kid Cudi poured himself and his message into this album so smoothly and descriptively that even apathetic listeners can pick up on it easily, but how does he deliver his message and emotions so vividly?

            In “Man on the Moon: The End of Day”, Mescudi initially divulges into his past experiences with family and drugs and displays his negative emotions and views on these topics as well as his depressed view of the world. Mescudi displays his inner thoughts rhythmically to give the listener a taste of his world

“I’m super paranoid, like a 6th sense

Since my father died, I ain't been right since
And I tried to piece the puzzle of the universe
Split an eighth of shrooms just so I could see the universe”(Mescudi, 2009).

  But why does he put himself out so unflinching and honestly? Especially in a genre where the average listener would say such a topic is sign of weakness. Never been shy to express himself even since his very first mixtape (A Kid Named Cudi), Mescudi has always been known for his relatable life experiences and how his messages can help guide people into a better mind state and better outlook on life. The more depressive songs on the album like Solo Dolo or My World seem to draw attention and create a commonality of feelings between the listener and the artist, and as the music goes on the listener continues to make connections and begins to empathize. Mescudi then swiftly switches the tempo and feeling of the album throughout the entire piece until it evolves into a more positive and inspiring tone. Mescudi is effective in his message but a message is useless without an audience to interpret it, so what kind of audience does Mescudi appeal to? What kind of people does his music affect the deepest?

            Being primarily in the hip hop genre, Mescudi’s audience tends to be around the teenage years 13-18 and on to the mid 20’s, these ages tend some of the most confusing times in a persons life. The possible reason why Mescudi’s message is so powerful is because he gives life tips to young people who are currently seeking any kind empathy, so Mescudi reaches out through his music. To his credit, Mescudi is often referred to as the “The Big Brother” rapper something Cudi is proud of and gladly provokes as seen in his intro to REVOFEV:

“Yeah, welcome, welcome you, hey
I'm your big brother

What do I have to say to the kids?” (Mescudi, 2010)

 What he says to the kids involves every range of emotion and thought from anger to loneliness to sadness, to happiness, love, confusion etc; all of these feelings are common blights of the teenage mind But almost any artist from any genre can practice such techniques, so what makes Man on the Moon: The End of Day so different?

            Man on the Moon: The End of Day’s musical style was a new kind of approach that only Kid Cudi and Kayne West who mentored Cudi had practiced, it was a recipe of theme centered, rhymic verses with a smooth flow accompanied by extremely memorable hooks that often summarized the topic or concept of the song these hooks were also a mixture of rapping and singing which gave the style its nickname “sing song rap”. Mescudi created this style previously on his mixtape but on the album he perfected the art and delivery thanks to Kayne West’s mentorship, examples of the style in its best form are on the songs: Soundtrack to my Life, Up,Up Away, Pursuit of Happiness and Cudi zone. The style isn’t the only thing unique about the album; Mescudi took after his Mentor and added a story element to the album which puts another layer of depth in it as the narrated story seems to segregate the tone of the music. This segregation is enabled by the tale that is told about a hero who transcends from a dreamlike paradise to a realm of nightmares and fears and then to a sanctum of inner peace and calm. The style and the storytelling factor is especially effective when trying to invoke connections to the listener as the hooks often hit you and makes you want sing along with the song, after the song is over you are again hit with the intriguing tale of the Man on the Moon (the hero within the story) which hints that tone is about to change. The songs are especially infectious and memorable and often stick to you as well as the meanings of them making an effective effort in reaching out to listeners.   

Making music is a hard and tiring process in any genre but making music that does more than entertain the listener, but actually enlightens and uplifts them can be a unrelentingly difficult  procedure that some cannot simply complete. But when the process is done right, the fans and artist bond and enable an invisible connection to each other, they are connected by the words that came from the artists mind and landed in fans heart. The positive music in the album encourages many young people to be accepting and happy with whom they are, while the smooth, darker melodies calm and speak to the soul of the listeners. Kid Cudi’s Man on the Moon: The End of Day album was a successful approach on how to reach out to people through seamless lyrics and beats, so successful that many fans of hip hop and hip hop critics alike refer to the album as a classic and will live past the current decade of its birth. Man on the Moon’s arsenal of methods to appeal to the listener seems to be the key in how the message is so powerful and how even apathetic listeners can become die hard fans.

(Mescudi,Scott. "Man on the Moon": The End of Day, Universal Motown Records, 2009, CD)

To listen: http://musicmp3.ru/artist_kid-cudi__album_man-on-the-moon-the-end-of-day.html#.Uk20RhDRJFs