Maps of Music

Speedin' Bullet 2 Heaven (2015)

Where the lyrics of Speedin' Bullet 2 Heaven take you, and where it was really made.

Kid Cudi planned this album as his last, then it debuted at number 36 on the Billboard 200, his first album to miss the top 10.

Key places

Chalice Recording Studios, Los Angeles (2015)

Recording site Chalice Recording — The album was recorded at Chalice Recording Studios in Los Angeles, one of the four studios named for its sessions. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Conway Recording Studios, Los Angeles (2015)

Recording site Conway Recording Studios — Conway Recording Studios in Los Angeles is one of the studios where the album was recorded. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Red Barn Recording Studios, Big Sur (2015)

Recording site Red Barn Recording Studios — Red Barn Recording Studios in Big Sur is where part of the album was recorded, with the point placed at the city centre. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• Speedin' Bullet 2 Heaven: fifth studio album by American musician Kid Cudi
• Released December 4, 2015 through Republic Records and Cudi's Wicked Awesome Records imprint
• 26-track double album: main album ('Side A', 18 tracks) and bonus disc ('Side B', 8 demos and outtakes)
• Primarily produced by Cudi; Plain Pat co-produced four tracks
• Alternative rock, grunge, indie rock, punk rock and lo-fi album
• Marked a departure from the hip-hop sound of Cudi's previous albums
• Four skits feature Mike Judge voicing the characters of Beavis and Butt-Head
• Themes: mental health, depression, alienation, self-harm, anger and suicidal thoughts

Background

• Cudi's previous rock music project was WZRD, with Dot da Genius, which released a 2012 debut album
• Announced on Twitter April 4, 2015 as 'coming really really soon'
• Cudi confirmed on May 25, 2015 that the album would have no guest features
• Cudi later called the period around its writing and recording one of his darkest times
• He said he was struggling with cocaine addiction and suicidal thoughts, and had planned it as his final album
• Release date confirmed October 27, 2015

Recording

• Recorded at Chalice, Conway and Henson Recording Studios in Los Angeles, and Red Barn Recording Studios in Big Sur
• Cudi produced the entire album himself and performed all of its bass and guitar parts
• Cudi said the album had no 'synths or electronic sounds'
• Cudi avoided click tracks and quantization, and recorded everything on two-inch tape
• Dennis Cummings, Cudi's manager, received an executive producer credit

Cover

• Cover art unveiled November 17, 2015, four days after the track listing of Side A was revealed

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Tracklist

Disc 1

Disc 2

Sources: musicbrainz.org

Artist

Formation

• Scott Ramon Seguro Mescudi, known as Kid Cudi, was born January 30, 1984 in Cleveland, Ohio.
• He began rapping in 2003 and moved to New York City in 2005 to pursue a music career.
• His song "Day 'n' Nite" gained online attention in 2007, leading Kanye West to sign him to GOOD Music in 2008.
• His debut mixtape A Kid Named Cudi was released in July 2008.

Career

• Debut album Man on the Moon: The End of Day (2009) reached commercial and critical success and received quadruple platinum certification.
• Second album Man on the Moon II: The Legend of Mr. Rager (2010) received platinum certification.
• Formed the rock band WZRD, whose 2012 debut topped the Billboard Top Rock Albums chart.
• Album Indicud (2013) peaked at number two on the Billboard 200.
• Formed the duo Kids See Ghosts with Kanye West in 2018.
• Single "The Scotts" with Travis Scott (2020) became his first number one on the Billboard Hot 100.
• Released Man on the Moon III: The Chosen (2020) and Entergalactic (2022).
• Acted in HBO's How to Make It in America, Need for Speed, and Bill & Ted Face the Music, among other works.
• Won two Grammy Awards and has sold over 22 million units domestically.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Reception

At release

• Metacritic: score of 44 out of 100, based on reviews from five critics, indicating mixed or average reviews
• Critics called the consensus mixed, negative or polarizing
• Cleveland.com's Smith called it a poor man's Yeezus, an experiment lacking sonic depth
• Consequence's Kivel criticized the formulaic songwriting and ultra-repetitive guitar riffs, while praising the passion and intensity
• HipHopDX's Bisnof found it lacking in identity and creatively inferior to Cudi's first two albums
• AllMusic's Jefferies said it would appeal only to hardcore fans, while outsiders would find it sloppy and confused
• Pitchfork's Ramirez called it dated and self-indulgent
• The Needle Drop's Fantano gave it zero out of ten and called it the worst album he reviewed in 2015
• Vice's Downer called it so bad it's good, comparing it to The Room (2003)
• Billboard's Ex found it uncomfortably internal but a pleasurable listen
• Peers including Erykah Badu, Kanye West and André 3000 praised it

Reappraisal

• 2018: HotNewHipHop's Fisher said the negative reception reflected the media shutting down Black artists who step outside 'Black music'
• 2019: The Music's Wehrer said it was worthy of reassessment and that Cudi rejuvenated rap-rock
• 2021: The Fader's Darville said it paved the way for young Black artists to embrace the genre
• 2022: XXL listed it among hip-hop albums that did not live up to the hype
• 2024: Rolling Stone's Reeves dismissed it as bland alt-rock

Records

• Debuted at number 36 on the US Billboard 200
• First week sales of 19,365 album-equivalent units, 14,210 of them pure album sales
• Kid Cudi's first album not to chart in the top 10
• Sales and chart positions fell below his previous albums
• Reissued on cassette in 2016 and on vinyl in 2025

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · fr.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• Fantano's zero-out-of-ten review led to the album becoming the subject of memes.
• ASAP Rocky later named it his favorite Kid Cudi album.
• Cudi's 2016 album Passion, Pain & Demon Slayin' was described by Uproxx as a musical mea culpa for this album.
• In 2022, 'Confused!' and the title track were included on Cudi's first greatest hits compilation, The Boy Who Flew to the Moon, Vol. 1.
• The Especial Tour was cancelled after its first show in Denver, and the dates were later rescheduled to January to March 2016.
• The album's title track was released as the second single the day after the tour was cancelled.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

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