Posted by Hip Hop fans know the story of how Kid Cudi got his start in the music business after moving from his home state of Ohio to New York City in the mid 2000s to pursue his dreams. The Lonely Stoner forged connections with the likes of Dot Da Genius, A-Trak and Plain Pat, caught the attention of Kanye West and struck gold with “Day ‘N’ Nite” — and the rest is history.
However, but not many fans know about the small role that Jim Jones played in Cudi’s rise to fame. During a recent conversation with VIP Saturdays on Sirius XM, the Dipset capo spoke about being the first big-name artist to remix “Day ‘N’ Nite.”
“Man, Kid Cudi was a nobody!” Jones said. “He worked in a fucking store under Koch Records. I was signed to Koch Records. I didn’t even know Kid Cudi worked down there. Lisa Brunt’s nephew at the time was doing some work for me in my studio and he’s like, ‘Yo, I manage these video directors, I want them to shoot a video for you.’
“I’m like, ‘Show me the video.’ They showed me the video, ended up being a Kid Cudi video that they shot for free for him. They’re like, ‘Yo, this is the kid that works inside the fucking rock ‘n’ roll store under Koch.’ And I was like, ‘Give me the record and I’ll let y’all shoot me a video.’ They got me the record, I did the record, they shot the video.”
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The show host then asked Jim Jones how his version of “Day ‘N’ Nite” landed on Hot 97, where it received huge airplay. According to Capo, someone at the station ripped it off YouTube and played it on air, but somehow he got taken off the track.
“I put it on YouTube. Somebody at Hot 97 ripped it off of YouTube and started playing it at Hot 97,” he continued. “When [Cudi] got his deal, they took me off the record and went for ads without me on the record. DJ Cassidy did that. You know I bumped into him, that’s my man, though. It’s always a joke, though, but it happens like that. I’m solely responsible for Kid Cudi’s career. You can go tell him that and he’s going to tell you, ‘He’s right.’”
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Kid Cudi has yet to respond to Jim Jones’ claims, but he might not be the only person with something to say. Plain Pat, Kanye West’s former A&R, and DJ A-Trak also played pivotal roles in Cudi’s early career, while Kanye’s 2008 album 808s & Heartbreak helped introduce Mr. Rager to a wider audience.
Of course, Kanye ended up signing Cudi to his G.O.O.D. Music label the following year and appearing on his fan-favorite debut album Man on the Moon: The End of Day. Sadly, Kanye and Cudi’s relationship is less than harmonious these days.
Revisit Jim Jones’ “Day ‘N’ Nite” remix below.