Cover image by by Nils Müller //

Andrew Yee dives deep into the work of Scotty Ramon AKA Kid Cudi.

I love Kid Cudi. His music was the soundtrack to my late teens to early twenties. I still remember scrolling through Karmaloop, looking at Supra sneakers with ‘Day’n’Nite’ blaring in the background. In the intervening seventeen years, I’ve followed Kid Cudi’s career through albums, collaborations, brand campaigns, and acting (shout-outs to Domingo Brown). For Mr Solo Dolo’s next chapter, he’s picked up the brush and paints to express himself on the canvas.

The first glimpse we got of Cudi’s visual artwork was his self-portrait (I think) for his memoir ‘Cudi: the Memoir’ in mid 2025. His choice of a cartoonish aesthetic and big bold colours came as little surprise to anyone who’d followed his career. In the past, Cudi has had close affiliations with the likes of KAWS, Takashi Murakami, and has cited anime as an influence on several occasions.

Image by Mel De Cole //

We should’ve known that his memoir cover was just the tip of a bigger creative practice. One thing that I admire about Cudi is that he’s not a half-in, half-out kind of guy. Wherever his passion takes him, he usually plants the soles of his Jordan 3’s deep into it (‘Speedin’ Bullet 2 Heaven’ anyone?). After a year of experimenting in his studio, Cudi has debuted under his artist alias, Scotty Ramon, with his first-ever solo exhibition, ‘Echos of the Past’, along with a 16-minute documentary. While I began my artistic career in a group show in Darlinghurst, Cudi’s work will be exhibited at Ruttkowski;68 in Paris. To be fair, he is a global superstar who has meaningfully contributed to the pop culture zeitgeist. Meanwhile, I get mistaken for Dan Hong.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YYPHyiZzUPU

Cudi’s work causes the two halves of my brain to lock up like wrestlers in the middle of a ring. The left side immediately conjures cynical thoughts that this is nothing more than a vanity project. His paintings feel juvenile and basic. You’d be forgiven for thinking the work belonged to a HSC student who picked art to bludge than an international exhibiting artist.

However, it’s 2026. I’m picking positivity over negativity. The right side of my brain sees a man expressing himself with unbridled freedom. Throughout Cudi’s career, he’s always been vocal about his pursuit of inner peace. This narrative continues with ‘Echos of the Past’. In some of the darker pieces, he depicts himself face-to-face with demonic shadows or piercing his neck with a knife. However, there’s brightness to be found. My favourite artwork sees him flying through the sky full of fluffy clouds. The collection feels meditative, therapeutic, and inspired by some of that ‘Maui Wowie’. That last part isn’t speculation but a fact. In the first minute of the doc, he literally lights a fat joint while painting, haha.

My thoughts on Kid Cudi’s painting will have absolutely zero effect on his career as an artist. But for what it’s worth, he did a nice job. Cudi is clearly using art to play, and that’s something we could all use more of in our day-to-day lives. If you’re in Paris, go check out ‘Echos of the Past’. At the very least, give ‘Pursuit of Happiness’ a spin again while eating a fresh baguette.