The new studio album Man on The Moon III: The Chosen was released by Kid Cudi on Dec. 11, 2020. For the most part, the recent album got very good reviews. It was an album that was nostalgic for many people who have been fans of Kid Cudi since the 90’s.

The album begins with the prelude “Beautiful Trip”, which just contains a calming, futuristic beat for some of Cudi’s adlibs. This prelude is only 36 seconds long and flows directly into the first track, “Tequila Shots”, on the album. The beat and background music of this song is essentially the same as the prelude, which is why they flow together so well. Tequila Shots begins with a narrator that says “As he falls back deeper into a state… the return.” This narrator is introducing the album and says “the return” because, in the past, Cudi has had several albums titled with roman numerals I and II that seem to have been leading up to this one. 

The second track is called Another Day, and it starts with a brassy guitar being strummed. This song is more upbeat than the first and is about Kid Cudi’s struggles with mental health, as is the rest of  the album. The third song, “She knows This”, begins with a sample spoken by Michael Cera in Scott Pilgrim. It has a similar sound to a few other songs in the album, such as “Damaged” and “Heaven on Earth”. This is what made parts of the album sound a bit repetitive. Although the songs have similar sounds, the background of futuristic and creative beats still make it a very pleasant album to listen to.

My least favorite track on the album is Show Out (feat. Skepta and Pop Smoke). This song has a catchy beat, but the features are not artists that I usually listen to. The Pop Smoke feature feels  random and thrown in at the last minute. The sound that is common throughout the album just does not mesh well with what Pop Smoke contributes to the song. Skepta, the other feature, matches the sound better but is still not someone that I typically listen to. 

My favorite song from the album is Lovin’ Me  (feat. Phoebe Bridgers). This is a romantic, two-sided song about two people in love. The beat fits  well with the rest of the album but is just different enough so that it really stands out. Altogether, the album was a definite success for Kid Cudi. The mixture of futuristic and sentimental beats and features create a very unique soundtrack enjoyed by many Cudi fans.