8 Things You Must Know About Kid Cudi’s “Satellite Flight” Album

Only One Sample

The title track to the album “Satellite Flight” is the only one to feature a sample as Cudi uses the intro from “Coronado II” by Polaris. The original song was actually recorded by Polaris for a Nickelodeon television series album for “The Adventures of Pete & Pete”. Listen to the original track and “Satellite Flight” below.

Electric Lady Studios

“Troubled Boy” and “Too Bad I Have To Destroy You Now” are the only two songs on this 10 track album not recorded in the Los Angeles area. Both songs were recorded at the legendary Electric Lady Studios which was opened in 1970 by Jimi Hendrix after he purchased and old night club and converted it into a studio. The studio is one of the oldest in New York City and most recently had Daft Punk and Arcade Fire record their albums there in 2013.

Copernicus Landing

Moon and space themes are prevalent through out this album but its “Capernicus Landing” that has the most history behind it. The song is named after Nicolaus Copernicus who was an astronomer from the 1500′s who formulated a model of the universe which placed the Sun in the center of the solar system instead of the earth. The publication of his book is considered a major event in science history.

Where’s Cudi landing in reference to the song title? The Earth’s moon has a crater named after Copernicus that is located slightly northwest of the center of the Moon.

He Recorded The Entire Album Sober

During the recording of the “Satellite Flight” album Cudi says he gave up alcohol because of a slightly enlarged liver due to excessive drinking. Cudi called it “another one of those wake-up calls”; he also previously gave up smoking weed during the recording of the WZRD album in 2011.

I just got into the creative process and it wasn’t until I finished the album when I was like, “Wow, I made this entire project without drinking.” Kids are so quick to be like “Cudi, do coke! Get back on drugs. Cudi can’t do this without this.” And I put out some of my best product in a long time and I did it completely without alcohol.

Entirely produced by Kid Cudi / WZRD

Like WZRD and the majority of INIDCUD, the entire Satellite Flight album was produced by Kid Cudi and Dot Da Genius aka WZRD. Here’s the production breakdown for each track:

Majority of Album Recorded in LA

With Kid Cudi now residing in LA it’s no surprise the majority of this album was recorded in the Greater Los Angeles area. Recording for the album took place at Glenwood Studios in Burbank and Chalice Studios in Los Angeles. Chalice Studios has a long history of rap and hip hop artists recording their albums their including Kanye West who recorded Late Registration and Graduation there.

“Going To The Ceremony” is the only song on this album recorded at Scott’s Crib in LA. “Trapped In My Mind” from MOTM 2 was the first song recorded there followed by the majority of the WZRD album being recorded at Cudi’s home in LA.

Man On the Moon: The End of Day

With Kid Cudi returning to the Moon with this album as a prequel to the upcoming MOTM 3, it’s only fitting that he ties in his debut album and first trip to the moon through out his 5th album “Satellite Flight”. The final track on this album “Troubled Boy” features hints of “My World” from MOTM 1 while “In My Dreams 2015″ is the sequel (and noticeably more upbeat) version of “In My Dreams (Cudder Anthem).

Call Me Moon Man

With “Man on the Moon III” slated for a 2015 release Cudi is ready to take us back to the moon and this album serves as a perfect prelude for what to expect. “Return of The Moon Man” is an epic score fitting of being used in countless films and perfectly sets the tone for his return. The last time Cudi referred to himself as the “Moon Man” on a song was on the unreleased track “Call Me Moon Man” from 2009.