mvm.

When Kid Cudi announced a new album was on the horizon, accompanied with a full feature-length animated film, many avid Cudi fans were sceptical whether it would pay off.

But we needn’t have worried. Visually stunning animation, with a pizzazz of Cudi spark-and-sound, it has the delicacy and poise for a black adult-animated rom-com production to be spoken about for many years to come.

Equipped with an Into The Spiderverse-esque vivid animation, Entergalactic sees ambitious artist Jabari (voiced by Kid Cudi / Scott Mescudi himself) awash in his dream Manhattan apartment as he tackles the new relationships and new workload of modern contemporary life. With the help of his friends Ky (Ty Dolla $ign) and Jimmy (Timothee Chalamet), he romanticises his way from ex-lover Carmen (Laura Harrier) and falls for his next-door neighbour Meadow (voiced by Jessica Williams).

A seemingly subterranean project amongst artists and musicians alike, it’s safe to say that Entergalactic hits us all the right spots. Like, what’s not to love? From the bustling New York sidewalks to the glitzy stars and that bright golf ball at night, it’s accompanying soundtrack is an inebriated swank of rap caviar, as the chillest hip-hop vibes hit our radars.

Of course, the topics of a littered space is not an uncommon topic of discussion for our rapper here. His most popular installment series, Man on the Moon is quite possibly is most inventive yet, as it truly drives home a dreamy vocal style and a foray of feathery instrumentals. So, a seemless transition into a full-feature length visual art-decor form shouldn’t come as a surprise.

A chapter choreographed and chartered out, its poignant storytelling drives home the lust for love in a city. Seems oddly fundamental drawn down on paper, but the unbelievably unique look, feel and draw-in brings this story a whole new life and dexterity in terms of creative flow and style. From New Mode <<backdrop to Jabari BMXing to the stars and back>> to Do What I Want <<enjoying the frivolity of party life>> finally landing on Ignite The Love and Willing To Trust, it is at often, a quite beautiful reimagining of Cudi’s hive mind of Entergalactic. Despite the visual companion piece being originally released this year in 2022, many Cudi fanatics may find some throwbacks nestled within the globetrotting escapade itself.

With the leading title – Enter Galactic – providing a pivotal moment to Kid Cudi’s career during ’09’s Man on the Moon, right into Man on the Moon II the year after, with the wispy characterisation of Mr Rager as a Banksy-derivative of graffiti art that ultimately propels Jabari’s comic career. It is a true realisation of Cudi’s work coming to life with plenty of woozy colour and coy, that we’ve come to expect from such an established talent of our time.

As we lean in and lose ourselves in the addictive adderall-enfused world of a colour-by-numbers New York, it truly shows the next level of the true everlasting friendship between the visual and the audio – …

and we can only expect similar artistic masterminds to follow the same pathing.

Entergalactic is now available to stream on Netflix from 30th September.