Man On The Moon: The End Of Day

“Man on the Moon: The End of Day” is the debut studio album by Kid Cudi, released on September 15, 2009, through Dream On, GOOD Music and Universal Motown Records.

The story

Kid Cudi, born Scott Mescudi in Cleveland, moved to New York in 2005. His song “Day ’n’ Nite”, produced by Dot da Genius and first posted on MySpace, was picked up by Fool’s Gold Records in 2008. The mixtape “A Kid Named Cudi” followed that July, and Kanye West, introduced to his music by A&R Plain Pat, brought Cudi in to write and sing on “808s & Heartbreak” before signing him to GOOD Music. West, Plain Pat and Emile Haynie served as executive producers of the album, along with Sylvia Rhone.

Sound and production

The album is structured as a concept record in five acts, with Common narrating between sections. It follows a lonely figure who dreams of success and uses drugs to calm his fears and fend off night terrors, themes Cudi explored through hummed melodies and sung hooks as much as rapping. Dot da Genius’s production on “Day ’n’ Nite”, first released more than a year earlier, anchors the record. Singles included “Day ’n’ Nite”, “Make Her Say” and “Pursuit of Happiness”.

Legacy

The album debuted at No. 4 on the Billboard 200 with 104,000 copies sold in its first week. “Day ’n’ Nite” reached No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 and earned Grammy nominations for Best Rap Song and Best Rap Solo Performance, and “Pursuit of Happiness” reached No. 59. Metacritic assigned the album a score of 71 based on 15 reviews, and Entertainment Weekly called Cudi “a hyped upstart who really does represent a promising new phase in the genre’s evolution”. The RIAA certified the album four times platinum on December 15, 2022, and “Day ’n’ Nite” was later certified diamond. In 2020 Rolling Stone ranked the album No. 459 on its list of the 500 greatest albums. It led to two sequels, “Man on the Moon II: The Legend of Mr. Rager” in 2010 and “Man on the Moon III: The Chosen” in 2020.

Released September 15, 2009. More from hip hop in 2009.