Photography Cameron Krone 
Styling james worthington-demolet

Kid Cudi is your funky art-school cousin who’s constantly reminding you in subtle ways that he’s cooler than you. But he’s also your introspective stoner across-the-street neighbor longing for a connection. “I’m trying to think about how I can make the most beautiful sounding song ever created,” he tells us, his voice lifting a bit at the prospect. “Each time, I just want somebody to feel something in their heart.” Sure, this is a guy who turned Lady Gaga’s “Poker Face” into an acoustic, selfish little anthem about fellatio, but he’s also the one who told us that his goal as an artist is to make music that helps people through hard times. We asked him if there was a song that helped get him through a difficult period. “My Mind is Playing Tricks on Me” by the Geto Boys, he cites without missing a beat. “That was a jam that got me through a lot of shit.” He speaks candidly about a cocaine problem that he recently kicked—a cleansing recovery that helped him get his brain back. “Now I’m back on a mission, fully charged up,” he says, his eyes scanning the studio for the blunt we can both smell. I ask when he quit, and he stops his smell-search to give me a grave look. “The night I got arrested,” he says, before bursting out in laughter, punky little hip hop daredevil that he is.

T-shirt Billionaire Boys Club
Leather pants Versace
Hat Bailey of Hollywood
Cuff Kenneth Jay Lane
All other clothing and accessories artist’s own

Grooming Jodie Boland using Dior (See Management)
Photo assistant Christopher Artz
Grooming assistants Carrie lamarca and Anna schneider
Location Canoe Studios, New York

KEYWORDS: kid cudi, Music