In addition, to Nicki Minaj being the cover girl for Complex Magazine, so is Kid Cudi. In it, he discusses his beef with Wale, his cocaine use, and emo music. Pictures and excerpts when you read more!
This slideshow requires JavaScript.
Complex: Forgive me, but we gotta start with some controversy. In “Mojo So Dope,” you say that you “live through words, not metaphors, so I pass to be the rest of the freshmen.” What did you mean by that line?
Kid Cudi: I didn’t want anybody to take it the wrong way, because it wasn’t a dis. But most of the rappers that everyone loves are rappers that use metaphors. That’s not my style of rap. I like to rhyme in a more poetic way. Sometimes you don’t have to use these…witty ways of trying. It just sounds like somebody is overselling shit.
Complex: You’re big on not having your music compared to anyone else’s.
Kid Cudi: Did you see that Wale interview that he just did, comparing us to sports? Let me clear this up: I’m incomparable to anybody. I don’t care how people take that. No one can compete with me. I’m unfuckwittable; no one can knock me off my shit. I’m an unstoppable force, I’m a bullet. My trajectory is to the sky. Niggas got to do something really spectacular to fuck with me and my realm, and niggas be so bitter that you hear it in their voice.
Complex: Speaking of Wale, when you hit that fan at your show last December, he came out with a line about it ["Throwin' 'round wallets like the dude that Kid Cudi hit," from "Thank You Freestyle"].
Kid Cudi: It wasn’t a shot, it’s just a simple-ass rhyme by a simple-ass rapper. You can’t let that shit faze you. That’s one of those raps that just shows the world that you wack. Why would you even use that as a metaphor? Everybody think they Hov. Niggas ain’t got the magic like they think they do; there’s only a couple of wizards in this game. I’m a wizard and I know it.
Complex: How heavy did the drug use get?
Kid Cudi: I started doing cocaine to get through interviews, ’cause people wanted to know a lot about my personal life and I wasn’t prepared for a 60 Minutes interview every time. Doing bumps I was able to get through the day, but then I would smoke weed to calm me down—it was the only way I could get through the day without people noticing I was doing it.
Complex: Did you ever feel like you had a problem?
Kid Cudi: I never thought it was a problem, but I was definitely high-fiving death a couple of times. It took a lot for me to talk about shit like this on the album. I don’t feel like I need to explain myself to anyone besides the fans. My fans don’t believe shit until they hear me say it. And those are true Kid Cudi fans. I want them to know the story.
Complex: So is that it for cocaine?
Kid Cudi: Yup. No more blow. People do drugs to camouflage emotions and run away from their problems. Now I’m going to deal with certain things as they come, prioritize shit—man up, so to speak. Just for the record, it bugged me out that people said it was liquid cocaine. No, I’m just fucking rich, and my blow comes in a jar. There was no liquid in it—that shit makes no sense.
Complex: How do you feel about the “emo” label?
Kid Cudi: DMX is emo and he’s one of the realest niggas in the game. Emotion is what hip-hop thrives on. Don’t you want your music to have emotion in it? People like to always throw some negative cloud over it. Doesn’t even make sense. Jeezy is emo. When that nigga be rapping, you feel it. You know that nigga’s talking some real shit.
Read more over at Complex.com
