It’s almost INSANO time. After seeing a push from its initially intended September 2023 release date, Kid Cudi‘s ninth studio album is slated to land delay-free on its updated January 12 release date – “Promise! NEXT WEEK WE LIVE!!” he assured in a message on X this past Wednesday.
Despite the four-month delay, which he settled on after deeming the project wasn’t up to par (writing “I have to push INSANO back until January. I want to make sure that everything lines up and I give y’all the best version of myself,”) Cudi has still kept his fans fed lately, raging in many other realms including high fashion and authorship.
The dimensional musician dabbled in the comic space, teaming up with Star Trek for the multifaceted “Boldy Be” collaboration during New York Comic Con, and announcing his own Moon Man comic book series, with the first issue expected to hit shelves at the end of this month. His Members of the Rage fashion line continued to make waves in the high fashion ether, as he revealed a full-fledged second collection and showed for the first time at Paris Fashion Week. Not to mention he’s now reportedly got a memoir entitled CUDI and a dystopian horror film with Jeron Braxton dubbed Slime on the way as well.
While Cudder’s multihyphenate skills are admirable, it’s his hypnotic hums and ethereal melodies that fans await most. The rapper has sprinkled some one-off singles throughout the year, including “Guitar In My Room” with Lil Durk and Lyrical Lemonade and “HEAVEN’s GALAXY” for “Boldly Be,” but the intergalactic world of INSANO is where fans have been vying to escape to since long before September 2023. Now just one week out, Hypebeast has rounded up all of the confirmed information about the album below.
https://t.co/newgTCfD1k pic.twitter.com/loyBX6wrdJ
— The Chosen One (@KiDCuDi) December 15, 2023
Artwork
A while back Cudder confirmed the KAWS-curated album artwork for INSANO and it hasn’t wavered. Cudi and KAWS have joined forces many times in the past. KAWS curated the cover art for “THE SCOTTS,” and has also paired with the Man on the Moon for a handful of apparel capsules.
Named “IT TAKES WHAT IT NEEDS,” Cudi using the vibrant 2019 painting as INSANO‘s facade is a full-circle moment for the seasoned collaborators. Check it out below.
Features
Cudi vows to keep features hidden up until INSANO‘s official release, but that doesn’t mean he hasn’t dropped any hints. At an intimate Cudder’s Clubhouse show in New York City back in October, the rapper revealed a stacked lineup of contributing lyricists. “We got Travis. We got Rocky. We got Yachty … We got Thug. We got Pusha,” he listed, assuring that that’s not all he has in store. “I got more but that’s enough for now.”
Kid Cudi confirms Travis Scott, A$AP Rocky, Lil Yachty, Young Thug & Pusha T on his new album 💿 https://t.co/3Yh0bOWXIA pic.twitter.com/Vf0oo1r9hS
— HipHopDX (@HipHopDX) October 12, 2023
As revealed in an interview with Hip Hop DX, Cudi’s long-term collaborator Dot Da Genius is set to appear as a featured artist and producer. “I definitely have a couple of cuts on the album,” he told Hip Hop DX. “With his album, Cudi was in search of an invigoration; he wanted to work with a lot of different producers. But I definitely helped assist with the album, as I normally do with most of his projects.”
Recordin w Dot 😱
— The Chosen One (@KiDCuDi) December 17, 2023
The Entergalactic soundtrack saw features from Ty Dolla $ign, 2 Chainz, Don Toliver, Steve Aoki and Dot Da Genius, whereas Cudi’s LP before that, Man on the Moon III included Phoebe Bridgers, Trippie Redd, Skepta and Pop Smoke.
Tracklist
A tracklist remains to be seen, though Cudi shared in a post on X that he plans to unveil it on Monday. What we do know, however, is that the tracklist with the deluxe iteration included is slated to total to a whopping 40 song lineup. Per Apple Music’s current preview, INSANO boasts 21 tracks. Updates on the deluxe version have not yet surfaced.
As for the overall sound of the album, the rapper has drawn comparisons to Indicud, one of his more polarizing albums from 2013.
I got a chance to work w some really dope producers Ive never worked with before. We got Dot, of course, but pretty much outside of him and a couple other cats, its all new energy, which allowed me to go to new places and revisit some old vibes too. This album has a very…
— The Chosen One (@KiDCuDi) October 3, 2023
So far, Cudder has lifted the curtain on “ILL WHAT I BLEED” and “MOST AINT DENNIS” what were advertised as two official INSANO tracks, unveiled the same day he announced INSANO‘s delay. “ILL WHAT I BLEED” is on streaming and comes complete with a self-directed video, whereas “MOST AINT DENNIS” is still a SoundCloud exclusive. However, Apple Music does not list “ILL WHAT I BLEED” and “MOST AINT DENNIS” on INSANO‘s tracklist.
He’s also dropped off “AT THE PARTY” with Pharrell and Travis Scott and one-off single “PORSCHE TOPLESS” which Apple Music lists as the eleventh track and nineteenth tracks, respectively, despite Cudi never officially announcing they were part of the project.
Recently the rapper has also been teasing a song called “Superboy.”
Production
Yesterday, the rapper took to X to reveal the “Wonderful League of the Chosen” in full, a.k.a. a loaded list of producers that includes Pharrell, BNYX, Clams Casino, sadpony, Plain Pat and, of course, Dot.
The Wonderful League of Chosen pic.twitter.com/8WZciqzZEW
— The Chosen One (@KiDCuDi) January 4, 2024
In another post on the platform, he shouted his song with WondaGurl specifically and elsewhere he noted that BNYX is one of his favorite emerging producers on the scene at the moment.
INSANO drops on streaming, CDs and vinyl next Friday, January 12.
