The Man on the Moon, aka Kid Cudi, came to town Aug. 30 to perform some of his most magical and greatest hits during the To the Moon world tour, and I can say with certainty that I had never experienced anything more soul-filling and extraordinary.

When Cudi announced his world tour in June, my friends and I didn’t hesitate to buy the tickets as soon as they went on sale. Like many I know, Cudi has been a big part of my life, musically, and getting the chance to see him perform – after him going nearly five years without any arena tours – was an opportunity we couldn’t miss.

Kid Cudi is known for his mainstream songs like “Pursuit of Happiness”, “Mr. Rager”, and “Day N’ Nite”, amongst many others. Prior to the tour, he released “A Kid Named Cudi” this past year, but he announced the tour after he released “Man on the Moon III: The Chosen” in 2020.

The night began with Strick and 070 Shake opening up for Cudi. I must say, I wasn’t the biggest fan of Strick’s music, as it didn’t stand out or was too appealing to my ears. But it was something to listen to while we waited for Cudi to come out, so there’s that. 

I found myself liking 070 Shake, however. This artist made two songs with Kanye West – “Ghost Town” and “Violent Crimes” – before, so I wasn’t totally unfamiliar with them, but I never actually listened to their own music before. When they played one of their popular songs, “Guilty Conscience”, I thought that I could actually listen to them, as they sounded unique and the type of music they played sounded very surreal.

Finally, Kid Cudi came out to perform bangers such as “Down & Out” and “Tequila Shots”. It was a great way to get the crowd in the right mood. Towards the middle of the setlist, Cudi surprised everyone, however, by bringing out King Chip to perform “Just What I Am”.

Not a single song on the setlist was a poor choice, and the arrangement of when he performed the songs was just perfect. There was a small portion of the performance where I felt a little homesick – for the lack of a better word – because of what some of the songs mean to me, namely “GHOST!”, “Solo Dolo, Pt. III”, “The Void”, and “love.”, but Cudi made sure to not keep the audience in a hole, as he performed uplifting songs such as “Memories (by David Guetta feat. Kid Cudi)” and “Pursuit of Happiness (Steve Aoki Remix version)” to name a few.

The whole crowd was either dancing or swaying – synchronic to the songs that Cudi played. While he wasn’t singing a song, he was interacting with the audience and it just made the whole experience even better. After many years of anticipating this very day, the concert wasn’t a let down, and I haven’t discerned anything as fulfilling in my life. If only he performed for a little longer, since an hour and five minutes felt a little short compared to all the hype built up around Cudi going back on tour. That being said, I’d still rate this experience a solid 10/10, but I’d give it more ratings if I could.