Cudi Montage
{{Short description|2018 song by Kids See Ghosts}}
{{Good article}}
{{Infobox song
| name = Cudi Montage
| cover =
| alt =
| artist = Kids See Ghosts
| album = Kids See Ghosts
| released = {{start date|2018|06|08}}
| recorded =
| studio = West Lake Ranch, Jackson Hole, Wyoming
| length = 3:17
| writer =
| label =
| producer =
| misc = {{Extra track listing
| album = Kids See Ghosts
| type = song
| tracks = {{Kids See Ghosts track listing}}
}}
}}
"Cudi Montage" is a song by American hip hop duo Kids See Ghosts, composed of Kanye West and Kid Cudi, released as the final track on their eponymous debut studio album (2018). The song was produced by Kid Cudi and Dot da Genius, with co-production from Mike Dean. The song also features vocals from Mr Hudson. Dot da Genius recorded with Kids See Ghosts in 2018, and he recalled West as unifying him and Kid Cudi's musical interests. An electro-gospel track with rock influences, the song samples Kurt Cobain's unreleased track "Burn the Rain". In the lyrics of the song, Kids See Ghosts pledge to not repeat past mistakes.
The song received universal acclaim from music critics, who mostly complimented West's vocal performance. They were often appreciative of his lyricism, while some critics praised the sample of "Burn the Rain" and a few named "Cudi Montage" one of the highlights of Kids See Ghosts. The song reached number 69 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and also appeared on the charts in Australia, Canada, and Ireland. It has been certified gold in the United States by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Kids See Ghosts performed it live at the Camp Flog Gnaw Carnival in 2018, with West forgetting certain lyrics while performing.
Background and development
File:Nirvana around 1992 (cropped).jpg performing with Nirvana.|The song posthumously samples "Burn the Rain" by Kurt Cobain (front), whose work Kid Cudi thought to sample and approval was received from his family members.]]
On April 19, 2018, Kanye West announced a collaborative album with Kid Cudi. The album was revealed as being titled Kids See Ghosts by West, with him proposing the release date of June 8, 2018. Kid Cudi had been featured on numerous tracks by West prior to the announcement, including "Welcome to Heartbreak" (2008) and "Gorgeous" (2010).{{cite news|last=Sargent|first=Jordan|title=Kanye West Announces New Album With Kid Cudi|url=https://www.spin.com/2018/04/kanye-west-kid-cudi-album-kids-see-ghosts-release-date/|website=Spin|access-date=August 4, 2020|date=April 19, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180420005917/https://www.spin.com/2018/04/kanye-west-kid-cudi-album-kids-see-ghosts-release-date/|archive-date=April 20, 2018|url-status=live}} West released his eighth studio album Ye on June 1, 2018, with vocals from Kid Cudi included on the tracks "No Mistakes" and "Ghost Town".{{cite web |last1=Yeung |first1=Neil Z. |title=Ye – Kanye West |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/ye-mw0003181816 |publisher=AllMusic |access-date=August 4, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190403080453/https://www.allmusic.com/album/ye-mw0003181816 |archive-date=April 3, 2019 |url-status=live |df=mdy-all }}{{cite web|url=https://listen.tidal.com/album/98156343|title=ye / Kanye West|date=June 2018 |publisher=Tidal|access-date=August 4, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190220002831/https://listen.tidal.com/album/98156343|archive-date=February 20, 2019|url-status=live}} After contributing production to the former of the two tracks in Wyoming, American record producer Dot da Genius helped produce the Kids See Ghosts songs "Cudi Montage" and "Reborn" while he was in the state during 2018. The producer was studying at college when he first met Kid Cudi in 2007, recalling in a 2018 interview that he was getting into production at the time and the rapper "came by my studio setup in my parents' living room". Though Dot da Genius said their "immediate vibe" continued from the meeting onwards, he admitted West "was a very big unifier in our interests as musicians" while viewing him as "on another level and we both took notice". Speaking of recording with Kids See Ghosts in Wyoming, Dot da Genius explained that he "just tried to make everything as epic sounding as possible" and lauded the duo as "two of the best". According to him, anything mediocre will not work for the two "and they will definitely let you know"; he also recounted that Kids See Ghosts is "a blessing to be a part of, and I know the music will help people".{{Cite web|last=Witte|first=Rae|url=https://www.factmag.com/2018/06/16/dot-da-genius-interview-kid-cudi-kanye-west/|title=Dot Da Genius on co-producing Kanye and Cudi's Kids See Ghosts|website=Fact|date=June 16, 2018|access-date=December 11, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190804162419/https://www.factmag.com/2018/06/16/dot-da-genius-interview-kid-cudi-kanye-west/|archive-date=August 4, 2019|url-status=live}} The song was produced by Kid Cudi and Dot da Genius, while co-produced by Mike Dean. It stands along with "Reborn" as one of the two tracks on Kids See Ghosts to not feature production from West.
"Cudi Montage" posthumously samples Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain's home recording "Burn the Rain" from the 1990s, which was officially released in 2015 as part of the compilation album Montage of Heck: The Home Recordings.{{cite web |last1=Darville |first1=Jordan |title=Kanye West and Kid Cudi sampled Kurt Cobain on Kids See Ghosts |url=http://www.thefader.com/2018/06/08/kanye-west-cudi-kurt-cobain-kids-see-ghosts-sample-reborn |website=The Fader |access-date=September 8, 2018 |date=June 8, 2018 |archive-date=September 9, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180909035520/http://www.thefader.com/2018/06/08/kanye-west-cudi-kurt-cobain-kids-see-ghosts-sample-reborn |url-status=live }} Kid Cudi said in a July 2018 Billboard cover story that although the sample was the one on Kids See Ghosts he was most worried about, Kurt's widow Courtney Love and his daughter Frances Bean Cobain were "really cool and they cleared it".{{cite magazine|last1=Abdurraqib|first1=Hanif|url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/hip-hop/8466037/kid-cudi-interview-billboard-cover-story-2018|title=The Reawakening of Kid Cudi (Exclusive Interview)|magazine=Billboard|date=July 19, 2018|access-date=February 1, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180722012940/https://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/hip-hop/8466037/kid-cudi-interview-billboard-cover-story-2018|archive-date=July 22, 2018|url-status=live}} The rapper asserted he "love[s] them both for that" and that Love informed him she doesn't "clear shit for just anybody", which he heavily recognized while expressing strong gratitude. In an October 2018 GQ interview, Kid Cudi believes that Kids See Ghosts were working on the song while touring when he came up with the idea of sampling Kurt Cobain and remembers himself "sitting with this idea for the longest", but not knowing "if it would be any good". The member confesses to being unsure if the idea would work until he presented it to Dot da Genius in a way, following this by telling him how he wanted to chop up the Cobain sample, before his engineer William J. Sullivan deployed the technique. Kid Cudi recalls that after this, "we added drums to it, and then it just kind of, came out like that", describing the idea as "a beautiful marriage". He elaborates, "Everything came together and to have Kanye on it, really just takes it to another level." Kid Cudi does state West was uncertain due to having more material on his laptop while he believed in the "one joint"; the former of the two cites Nirvana as an influence, especially Cobain.{{cite web |title=Kid Cudi Breaks Down His Most Iconic Tracks |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CXLz0RknKcI |website=GQ |access-date=February 14, 2021 |date=October 23, 2018 |via=YouTube }}
The song sampling Cobain's material does not mark the only time a posthumous artist is sampled on the album, as the track "4th Dimension" samples the work of Louis Prima; contrary to "Cudi Montage", he is credited as a featured artist on the track.{{cite web |last1=Setaro |first1=Shawn |title=How Did a Dead Artist End Up on {{'}}Kids See Ghosts{{'}}? |url=https://www.complex.com/music/2018/06/how-did-kids-see-ghosts-end-up-with-featured-artist-louis-prima |website=Complex |access-date=December 11, 2020 |date=June 13, 2018 |archive-date=May 3, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190503060729/https://www.complex.com/music/2018/06/how-did-kids-see-ghosts-end-up-with-featured-artist-louis-prima |url-status=live }} Similarly to West and Kid Cudi, Cobain had struggled with mental illness during his lifetime. Kid Cudi had shown his admiration of Cobain in 2011, making a visit to the musician's unofficial memorial at Viretta Park in Seattle, Washington. West had also acknowledged Cobain in the past, once comparing himself to the musician.{{cite magazine |last1=Martoccio |first1=Angie |title=Smells Like Holy Spirit: Hear Kanye's Sunday Service Cover Nirvana |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/kanye-west-cover-nirvana-sunday-service-864861/ |magazine=Rolling Stone |access-date=December 11, 2020 |date=July 29, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201022010850/https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/kanye-west-cover-nirvana-sunday-service-864861/ |archive-date=October 22, 2020}}
Composition and lyrics
{{Listen
|filename= Cudi Montage.ogg
|pos= right
|title= "Cudi Montage"
|description=A 19-second snippet of "Cudi Montage", featuring West rapping about different types of violence within black communities in his verse alongside a chopped up sample of the guitar riff from Cobain's home recording "Burn the Rain". West finishes the verse by referencing Alice Johnson, who was freed from jail in 2018 after serving 21 years when Kim Kardashian was successful in lobbying for her release. Kardashian met with Donald Trump to organize the release, and West expresses hope in the lyrics that Johnson "will inspire men".}}
Musically, "Cudi Montage" is an electro-gospel track, with rock influences.{{cite web |last1=Kim |first1=Michelle |title=5 Takeaways from Kanye West and Kid Cudi's New Album, Kids See Ghosts |url=https://pitchfork.com/thepitch/5-takeaways-from-kanye-west-and-kid-cudis-new-album-kids-see-ghosts/ |website=Pitchfork |access-date=August 1, 2019 |date=June 8, 2018 |archive-date=June 12, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180612143655/https://pitchfork.com/thepitch/5-takeaways-from-kanye-west-and-kid-cudis-new-album-kids-see-ghosts/ |url-status=live }}{{cite web |last1=Devlin |first1=Ben |url=https://www.musicomh.com/reviews/albums/kids-see-ghosts-kids-see-ghosts |title=Kids See Ghosts – Kids See Ghosts {{!}} Album Reviews |website=musicOMH |access-date=December 12, 2020 |date=June 8, 2018 |archive-date=June 13, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180613031704/https://www.musicomh.com/reviews/albums/kids-see-ghosts-kids-see-ghosts |url-status=live }}{{Cite news|last=Madden|first=Sidney|url=https://www.npr.org/2018/06/12/619183944/the-strange-subdued-catharsis-of-kanye-and-cudis-kids-see-ghosts|title=The Strange, Subdued Catharsis of Kanye And Cudi's {{'}}Kids See Ghosts{{'}}|publisher=NPR|date=June 12, 2018|access-date=December 12, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180831175056/https://www.npr.org/2018/06/12/619183944/the-strange-subdued-catharsis-of-kanye-and-cudis-kids-see-ghosts|archive-date=August 31, 2018|url-status=live}} It contains a chopped-up sample of the guitar riff from "Burn the Rain" throughout, written and performed by Cobain,{{cite web |author=Khal |title=4 Things About {{'}}Kids See Ghosts{{'}} You Might Have Missed |url=https://www.complex.com/music/2018/06/things-about-kids-see-ghosts-you-might-have-missed/samples |website=Complex |access-date=September 8, 2018 |date=June 8, 2018 |archive-date=June 17, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180617042305/https://www.complex.com/music/2018/06/things-about-kids-see-ghosts-you-might-have-missed/samples |url-status=live }} with the sample including guitar strums.{{cite web |last1=Watson |first1=Elijah C. |title=Kid Cudi's 'Cudi Montage' From {{'}}Kids See Ghosts{{'}} Is Rap's Most Touching Tribute To Kurt Cobain |url=http://www.okayplayer.com/originals/kids-see-ghosts-kid-cudi-kanye-kurt-cobain.html |publisher=Okayplayer |access-date=September 8, 2018 |date=June 8, 2018 |archive-date=June 17, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180617092904/http://www.okayplayer.com/originals/kids-see-ghosts-kid-cudi-kanye-kurt-cobain.html |url-status=live }} Michelle Kim of Pitchfork described the use of the sample as "pointed", due to Kids See Ghosts largely dealing with overcoming depression. She explained this is because Cobain died from suicide, adding that "it's also an especially fitting pairing for Kid Cudi, who [...] has embraced his inner angsty rock star since long before such influences were de rigueur in rap". The sample is utilized at the start of the song heavily, becoming less prominent as the chorus approaches. First drums, then synths are added alongside the sample as the guitar gradually fades, being used to "soften the song".{{cite web |last1=Hamilton |first1=Jack |title=On Kanye West's New Album, the GOOD Music Rapper Focuses Simply on Good Music |url=https://slate.com/culture/2018/06/kanye-west-and-kid-cudis-new-album-kids-see-ghosts-reviewed.html |website=Slate |access-date=August 1, 2019 |date=June 11, 2018 |archive-date=July 31, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190731163500/https://slate.com/culture/2018/06/kanye-west-and-kid-cudis-new-album-kids-see-ghosts-reviewed.html |url-status=live }}{{cite web |last1=Garner |first1=Marty Sartini |title=Kid Cudi lifts Kanye up on Kids See Ghosts |url=https://www.avclub.com/kid-cudi-lifts-kanye-up-on-kids-see-ghosts-1826711881 |website=The A.V. Club |access-date=August 1, 2019 |date=June 11, 2018 |archive-date=June 12, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180612192730/https://www.avclub.com/kid-cudi-lifts-kanye-up-on-kids-see-ghosts-1826711881 |url-status=live }} Bass is also laid over the guitar riff. The chorus of the song is performed by Kid Cudi, and it is powered by synths.{{cite web |last=Stuzin |first=Devin |title=Kanye West & Kid Cudi Fly High Above Their Demons on {{'}}Kids See Ghosts{{'}} |url=http://atwoodmagazine.com/ksg-kids-see-ghosts-kanye-west-kid-cudi-review/ |website=Atwood Magazine |access-date=December 12, 2020 |date=June 21, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180623165724/http://atwoodmagazine.com/ksg-kids-see-ghosts-kanye-west-kid-cudi-review/ |archive-date=June 23, 2018 |url-status=live }} West delivers his verse after Kid Cudi's chorus, with the verse lasting until around two minutes into the song.
Lyrically, the track is a pledge from Kids See Ghosts to avoid repeating past mistakes, with both of the members looking towards faith for overcoming life's struggles.{{cite web |last1=Jenkins |first1=Craig |title=Kids See Ghosts Is the Win Kanye and Kid Cudi Badly Needed |url=https://www.vulture.com/2018/06/album-review-kanye-west-and-kid-cudi-kids-see-ghosts.html |website=Vulture |url-access=limited |access-date=August 1, 2019 |date=June 8, 2018 |archive-date=June 10, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180610221528/https://www.vulture.com/2018/06/album-review-kanye-west-and-kid-cudi-kids-see-ghosts.html |url-status=live }} In Kid Cudi's verse, he delivers remarks on the process of his fractured mind being restructured.{{cite web |title={{'}}Kids See Ghosts{{'}} Says Far More on Mental Illness Than Current Emo Rap |url=https://www.highsnobiety.com/p/kids-see-ghosts-mental-illness/ |website=Highsnobiety |access-date=December 12, 2020 |date=June 12, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190718084211/https://www.highsnobiety.com/p/kids-see-ghosts-mental-illness/ |archive-date=July 18, 2019 |url-status=live }} West uses his verse to rap about cycles of violence in black communities and the pain of loss as he comes to realization with the effects of police brutality, incarceration, and mass shootings on the black community, concluding with a reference to Alice Johnson, an African-American woman jailed for life over a non-violent drug offence and whose sentence was ended in 2018 after 21 years by US president Donald Trump at the suggestion of the rapper's wife Kim Kardashian.{{cite web |last1=Van Nguyen |first1=Dean |title=Kanye West & Kid Cudi: Kids See Ghosts review – a psychedelic return to godlike power |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2018/jun/09/kanye-west-kid-cudi-kids-see-ghosts-review |website=The Guardian |access-date=August 1, 2019 |date=June 9, 2018 |archive-date=June 9, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180609145153/https://www.theguardian.com/music/2018/jun/09/kanye-west-kid-cudi-kids-see-ghosts-review |url-status=live }}{{cite web |last1=Wilson |first1=Matthew |title=The top 10 pop culture references in Kanye West and Kid Cudi's new album, {{'}}Kids See Ghosts{{'}} |url=https://eu.usatoday.com/story/life/music/2018/06/08/top-10-references-kanye-wests-new-album-kids-see-ghosts/685521002/ |website=USA Today |access-date=June 8, 2019 |date=August 6, 2018 |archive-date=November 9, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201109023146/https://eu.usatoday.com/story/life/music/2018/06/08/top-10-references-kanye-wests-new-album-kids-see-ghosts/685521002/ |url-status=live }}{{cite magazine |last1=Diep |first1=Eric |title=Kanye West & Kid Cudi Bring Out the Best In Each Other on {{'}}Kids See Ghosts{{'}} Album |url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/hip-hop/8460107/kanye-west-kid-cudi-kids-see-ghosts-album |magazine=Billboard |access-date=August 1, 2019 |date=August 6, 2018 |archive-date=June 8, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180608214727/https://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/hip-hop/8460107/kanye-west-kid-cudi-kids-see-ghosts-album |url-status=live }} For the chorus, Kid Cudi repeatedly sings "stay strong" and "save me, Lord". During the outro of the song, a call and response sees West sing "Lord shine your light on me, save me please", with Kid Cudi and a backing vocalist responding by imploring to "stay strong" as the latter of the two rappers hums.{{cite web |last1=Bassett |first1=Jordan |title=Kids See Ghosts (Kanye West and Kid Cudi) – {{'}}Kids See Ghosts{{'}} review |url=https://www.nme.com/reviews/album/kids-see-ghosts-kids-see-ghosts-review |website=NME |access-date=August 1, 2019 |date=June 11, 2018 |archive-date=June 6, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190606145721/https://www.nme.com/reviews/album/kids-see-ghosts-kids-see-ghosts-review |url-status=live }}
Release and promotion
"Cudi Montage" was released on June 8, 2018, as the seventh and final track on Kids See Ghosts' eponymous debut studio album.{{cite web|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/kids-see-ghosts-mw0003183929|title=Kids See Ghosts – Kids See Ghosts|last=Yeung|first=Neil Z.|publisher=AllMusic|access-date=December 11, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180613184810/https://www.allmusic.com/album/kids-see-ghosts-mw0003183929|archive-date=June 13, 2018|url-status=live}} The song switched from its originally slated position as the fifth track, which West revealed on May 15, 2018, when he shared an initial track list for the album.{{cite magazine|last1=Lamarre|first1=Carl|url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/hip-hop/8456225/kanye-west-kids-see-ghosts-tracklist|title=Kanye West Reveals Track Lists for Kid Cudi Joint Album & Pusha T's {{'}}King Push{{'}} Project|magazine=Billboard|date=May 15, 2018|access-date=December 11, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190430141844/https://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/hip-hop/8456225/kanye-west-kids-see-ghosts-tracklist|archive-date=April 30, 2019|url-status=live}} On the day of the album's release, multiple tracks were labeled incorrectly on streaming services because of a technical error, which included "Cudi Montage" being mislabeled as the third track on Kids See Ghosts, "4th Dimension".{{cite magazine |last1=Klinkenberg |first1=Brendan |title=A Brief Guide to the {{'}}Kids See Ghosts{{'}} Tracklist |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/a-brief-guide-to-the-kids-see-ghosts-tracklist-629860/ |magazine=Rolling Stone |access-date=September 8, 2018 |date=June 8, 2018 |archive-date=September 4, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180904052356/https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/a-brief-guide-to-the-kids-see-ghosts-tracklist-629860/ |url-status=live }}{{cite web |last1=Cush |first1=Andy |title=The Kids See Ghosts Track Lists and Credits Are Full of Errors |url=https://www.spin.com/2018/06/kids-see-ghosts-track-list-credits/ |website=Spin |access-date=September 8, 2018 |date=June 8, 2018 |archive-date=September 4, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180904052352/https://www.spin.com/2018/06/kids-see-ghosts-track-list-credits/ |url-status=live }} During their first show billed as Kids See Ghosts, the duo performed the song live at the 2018 Camp Flog Gnaw Carnival.{{Cite news|last1=Krol|first1=Charlotte|title=Kanye West and Kid Cudi perform from suspended glass box in first public show as Kids See Ghosts|url=https://www.nme.com/news/music/watch-kid-cudi-and-kanye-west-play-first-show-as-kids-see-ghosts-2401546|website=NME|date=November 12, 2018|access-date=December 11, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200508175036/https://www.nme.com/news/music/watch-kid-cudi-and-kanye-west-play-first-show-as-kids-see-ghosts-2401546|archive-date=May 8, 2020|url-status=live}} The song was the eighth track of their set, though it was the last track that they released as Kids See Ghosts to be performed.{{Cite web|last1=Young|first1=Alex|title=Kanye and Kid Cudi Make Live Debut as Kids See Ghosts: Video+ Setlist|url=https://consequenceofsound.net/2018/11/kanye-and-kid-cudi-kids-see-ghosts-live-debut/|website=Consequence|date=November 12, 2018|access-date=December 11, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181112181318/https://consequenceofsound.net/2018/11/kanye-and-kid-cudi-kids-see-ghosts-live-debut/|archive-date=November 12, 2018|url-status=live}} While performing his verse from the song, West forgot several lyrics.{{cite magazine|url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/hip-hop/8484361/kanye-west-kid-cudi-kids-see-ghosts-live-debut-camp-flog-gnaw|title=Kanye West & Kid Cudi's Kids See Ghosts Makes Live Debut at 2018 Camp Flog Gnaw|last=Saponara|first=Michael|magazine=Billboard|date=November 12, 2018|access-date=December 11, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190609233836/https://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/hip-hop/8484361/kanye-west-kid-cudi-kids-see-ghosts-live-debut-camp-flog-gnaw|archive-date=June 9, 2019|url-status=live}}
Reception
"Cudi Montage" was met with universal acclaim from music critics, with general praise for West's verse. Israel Daramola of Spin considered the song a "melancholy finale" to Kids See Ghosts, highlighting the "quavering vulnerability" of the duo's vocal performances while also complimenting the sample of Cobain's "Burn the Rain" for being among what "makes the album work as brilliantly as it does".{{cite web |last1=Daramola |first1=Israel |title=Kanye West Finds the Perfect Use of Kid Cudi on Kids See Ghosts |url=https://www.spin.com/2018/06/kanye-west-kid-cudi-kids-see-ghosts-review/ |website=Spin |access-date=August 1, 2019 |date=June 14, 2018 |archive-date=April 3, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190403150446/https://www.spin.com/2018/06/kanye-west-kid-cudi-kids-see-ghosts-review/ |url-status=live }} Multiple critics say that Kanye’s repeatedly said chorus “Shining light on me” sounds similar to New Orleans based rapper Lil Wayne. Eoin Donnelly, writing for The Line of Best Fit, honored West's performance on the track as "one of his best verses in years", feeling that the verse provides "a glimpse of something resembling the 'old Kanye'" and believing the older version of West "uses the power of his voice for the good of his community".{{cite web |last1=Donnelly |first1=Eoin |title=Kanye West follows the divisive ye with Kids See Ghosts, a glorious collaboration with Kid Cudi |url=https://www.thelineofbestfit.com/reviews/albums/kanye-west-follows-the-divisive-ye-with-kids-see-ghosts-a-glorious-collabor |website=The Line of Best Fit |access-date=August 1, 2019 |date=June 11, 2018 |archive-date=August 1, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190801132035/https://www.thelineofbestfit.com/reviews/albums/kanye-west-follows-the-divisive-ye-with-kids-see-ghosts-a-glorious-collabor |url-status=live }} Pitchfork editor Jayson Greene wrote that with its empathy, the song "relocates a precious, nearly vanished quantity of Kanye's music" and called West's verse one of his "most sustained efforts to imagine someone else's life" since his performance on the single "All of the Lights" (2010).{{cite web |last1=Greene |first1=Jayson |author-link=Jayson Greene |title=Kanye West / Kid Cudi: Kids See Ghosts Album Review |url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/kanye-west-kid-cudi-kids-see-ghosts/ |website=Pitchfork |access-date=August 1, 2019 |date=June 11, 2018 |archive-date=July 22, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190722204916/https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/kanye-west-kid-cudi-kids-see-ghosts/ |url-status=live }} The Guardian{{'}}s Dean Van Nguyen wrote that West's lyricism "lays out a brutal cycle of violence and the pain of loss" while highlighting his "palpable" spirit for being reminiscent of when West "decried the capitalist grind" on "Spaceship" from his debut studio album The College Dropout (2004), and "called out" US president George W. Bush live on television. In a review of the album for Billboard, Eric Diep picked the song as one of the highlights and specifically praised Kid Cudi's "soaring" hook as well as West's lyrical style, commending the latter's reflectiveness.
Jack Hamilton from Slate decided the song is Kids See Ghosts{{'}} "prettiest and most affecting moment", analyzing that the "Burn the Rain" sample "gradually recedes as Cudi moves from his opening verse to the chorus", which he said features "cavernous, incantatory repetition". Hamilton further wrote that West's verse is "a murky but heartfelt rumination on violence" and called the remainder of the song after his performance "gorgeous, a soaring mass of voices and textures and chord changes that seem to move within their own incontestable logic". NME's Jordan Bassett glorified the call-and-response between the line "Lord shine your light on me" and the "Stay strong" vocals as the "stand-out moment" on the album, alongside directing praise towards the song's "calming wash of synth". At The A.V. Club, Marty Sartini Garner described the song as sampling "the detuned gloom" of "Burn the Rain" and made the observation that the sample is patiently overwhelmed "with daybreaking synths and a bright harmony vocal", finishing by liking the song being "a perfect capstone to a complex record". Entertainment Weekly reviewer Chuck Arnold stated Kid Cudi "offers encouragement to himself and others to 'stay strong'", and explained that despite it being "eerie" for Cobain to be sampled on the song after he "died by suicide", the sampling "leaves us with a message that, powerful in its simplicity, is as exceptional as the music".{{Cite magazine|url=https://ew.com/music/2018/06/11/kanye-west-and-kid-cudis-kids-see-ghosts-ew-review/|title=Kanye West and Kid Cudi's Kids See Ghosts: EW review|last=Arnold|first=Chuck|date=June 11, 2018|magazine=Entertainment Weekly|access-date=December 12, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180612232234/https://ew.com/music/2018/06/11/kanye-west-and-kid-cudis-kids-see-ghosts-ew-review/|archive-date=June 12, 2018|url-status=live}}
After the release of Kids See Ghosts, "Cudi Montage" debuted at number 69 on the US Billboard Hot 100.{{cite magazine |last1=Trust |first1=Gary |title=Louis Prima Sets Record For Longest Break Between Hot 100 Hits, Debuting on Kids See Ghosts' '4th Dimension' |url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/chart-beat/8461866/louis-prima-sets-record-longest-break-between-hot-100-hits |magazine=Billboard |access-date=December 11, 2020 |date=June 20, 2018 |archive-date=June 21, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180621000923/https://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/chart-beat/8461866/louis-prima-sets-record-longest-break-between-hot-100-hits |url-status=live }} Simultaneously, it entered the US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart at number 34. On July 9, 2021, "Cudi Montage" was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for pushing 500,000 certified units in the United States. Elsewhere in North America, the song reached number 61 on the Canadian Hot 100. In Australia, the song charted at number 89 on the ARIA Singles Chart. It further reached number 67 on the Irish Singles Chart.
Credits and personnel
Recording
- Recorded at West Lake Ranch, Jackson Hole, Wyoming{{cite magazine|url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/hip-hop/8462186/kanye-west-good-summer-albums-2018-every-song-ranked|title=Kanye West's GOOD Summer Album 2018 Series: Every Song Ranked|last=Brown|first=Eric Renner|magazine=Billboard|date=June 25, 2018|access-date=August 3, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190805091605/https://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/hip-hop/8462186/kanye-west-good-summer-albums-2018-every-song-ranked|archive-date=August 5, 2019|url-status=live}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/23/style/kanye-west-cody-wyoming.html|title=Kanye, Out West|website=The New York Times|url-access=registration|author=Bromwich, Jonah Engel|date=February 23, 2020|access-date=December 11, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200224231846/https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/23/style/kanye-west-cody-wyoming.html|archive-date=February 24, 2020}}
Personnel
{{Div col}}
- Kid Cudi{{spaced en dash}} songwriter, production
- Mike Dean{{spaced en dash}} songwriter, co-production, mixer
- Kanye West{{spaced en dash}} songwriter
- Kurt Cobain{{spaced en dash}} songwriter
- Dot da Genius{{spaced en dash}} production
- Zack Djurich{{spaced en dash}} engineer
- Mike Malchicoff{{spaced en dash}} engineer
- William J. Sullivan{{spaced en dash}} engineer
- Noah Goldstein{{spaced en dash}} engineer
- Jenna Felsenthal{{spaced en dash}} assistant engineer
- Jess Jackson{{spaced en dash}} mixer
- Sean Solymar{{spaced en dash}} assistant mixer
{{Div col end}}
Information taken from the Kids See Ghosts liner notes and Tidal.{{cite AV media notes|title=Kids See Ghosts|others=Kids See Ghosts|year=2018|type=booklet|publisher=GOOD Music and Def Jam Recordings|id=B0028759-02}}{{cite web|url=https://listen.tidal.com/album/90151605/credits|title=Kids See Ghosts / Kids See Ghosts: Credits|date=8 June 2018 |publisher=Tidal|access-date=September 8, 2018}}
Charts
Certifications
{{Certification Table Top|caption=Certifications and sales for "Cudi Montage"}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=United States|artist=Kids See Ghosts|title=Cudi Montage|award=Gold|type=single|relyear=2018|certyear=2021|refname="Gold"|access-date=July 14, 2021}}
{{Certification Table Bottom|streaming=true|nosales=true|noshipments=true}}
References
{{Reflist|30em}}
{{Wyoming Sessions}}
{{Kids See Ghosts}}
{{Kanye West songs}}
{{Kid Cudi songs}}
{{Mr Hudson}}
{{authority control}}
Category:Song recordings produced by Kid Cudi
Category:Song recordings produced by Mike Dean (record producer)
Category:Songs written by Kanye West
Category:Songs written by Kid Cudi
Category:Songs written by Mike Dean (record producer)