Kid Cudi honored Kurt Cobain while making his “Saturday Night Live” debut.
For his first solo performance as musical guest (he appeared with Kanye West in 2018), the rapper delivered a pair of songs off his latest album Man on the Moon III: The Chosen, released in December, on last night’s episode with host Carey Mulligan.
While performing “Tequila Shots,” he donned a green cardigan reminiscent of the one Cobain wore during Nirvana’s “MTV Unplugged” concert in 1993. Underneath it was a shirt featuring a photo of another late legend, “SNL” cast member Chris Farley, who Cudi also acknowledged on social media.
For his second performance of “Sad People,” Cudi appeared onstage in a spaghetti-strapped floral Off-White dress, designed by Virgil Abloh, that resembled a similarly patterned dress Cobain famously wore. The timing of the performance was significant as it came just days after the 27th anniversary of Cobain’s death on April 5, 1994. Cudi ended the performance with a smile and a curtsy.
Kid Cudi has shown his love for the Nirvana frontman in the past. He has a tattoo of Cobain on his arm and sampled his Montage of Heck demo “Burn the Rain” on Kids See Ghosts’ “Cudi Montage.”
In addition to his musical duties, Kid Cudi appeared in “SNL’s” “Weird Little Flute” music video that paid tribute to the flute used on songs such as JAY-Z’s “Big Pimpin’” and Future’s “Mask Off.” The hilarious sketch also featured Pete Davidson and Chris Redd, plus a surprise cameo from Timothée Chalamet.