Kid Cudi Kurt Cobain Saturday Night Live
[Photos via Kid Cudi/YouTube, Kurt Cobain/Spotify]

Kid Cudi honors Kurt Cobain during ‘Saturday Night Live’ performances

Over the weekend, Saturday Night Live viewers were treated to a stacked show that featured host and Promising Young Woman star Carey Mulligan, musical guest Kid Cudi and even a surprise cameo from Timothée Chalamet.

During the NBC show, Kid Cudi performed “Tequila Shots” and “Sad People” which appear on his history-making album Man On The Moon III: The Chosen. As well, Kid Cudi paid subtle tribute to Kurt Cobain, one of his biggest inspirations, during his performances.

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For Saturday Night Live, Kid Cudi truly gave his all and showcased his latest album Man On The Moon III: The Chosen. As it turns out, Kid Cudi’s SNL appearance aired just a few days after the 27th anniversary of Cobain’s sudden death on April 5, 1994. So, he took to the coveted SNL stage to honor Cobain and his legacy in a few subtle ways.

For “Tequila Shots,” Kid Cudi gave a nod to Nirvana’s legendary MTV Unplugged performance in 1993. He can be seen wearing a dark green cardigan, designed by Cactus Plant Flea Market, that resembles the iconic sweater Cobain wore during the stripped-down MTV set

Along with the cardigan, Kid Cudi also wore a shirt with a photo of the late Chris Farley on it. From 1990 to 1995, Farley was one of the cast members on Saturday Night Live. As well, he appeared in numerous films such as Billy Madison, Wayne’s World, Wayne’s World 2 and Coneheads. However, in December 1997, Farley died at the age of 33 from a drug overdose


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Kid Cudi also paid tribute to Cobain during his performance of “Sad People.” For the set, he teamed up with Virgil Abloh, the founder and CEO of Off-White, to create a beautiful white floral dress. Kid Cudi tweeted that the clothing item was created with Cobain in mind who wore numerous dresses throughout his life including on the cover of The Face in 1993.

Virgil designed the dress for me,” Kid Cudi says on Twitter. “I told him I wanted to show love to Kurt with a floral print sundress and this man made a masterpiece. Thank You [Abloh] you’re a fucking genius!! Love you man we did it!!!

During a 1993 interview with the Los Angeles Times, Cobain briefly opened up about his decision to not let gender norms dictate his clothing choices.

“Wearing a dress shows I can be as feminine as I want,” Cobain told the Los Angeles Times. “I’m a heterosexual… big deal, but if I was a homosexual, it wouldn’t matter, either.” 

As it turns out, Kid Cudi’s SNL floral dress is part of an upcoming collection he is doing with Off-White. Currently, no additional information regarding the collaboration has been released yet. 

“I’m doing a collection with Off-White, and the dress will be included,” Kid Cudi says on Twitter.


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Outside of his musical performances, Kid Cudi also took part in a hilarious sketch alongside Mulligan, Pete Davidson, Chris Redd and Chalamet, one of his biggest fans. In fact, Chalamet recently hosted SNL and previously teamed up with Davidson for the “Rap Roundtable” skit where they posed as SoundCloud rappers deeply influenced by “Fall Out Boys.”

For the Weird Little Flute sketch, the talented lineup created an entertaining music video all about their favorite instrument the flute.

More on Kid Cudi and Kurt Cobain

Over the years, Kid Cudi has openly talked about how much Cobain has inspired him. Back in 2011, he tweeted about wishing the late Nirvana frontman was still around.

“I’m obsessed with Kurt Cobain,” Kid Cudi tweeted. “I wish he was still here, so he could teach me guitar tricks.”

As well, in 2015, he also took to social media to share that Cobain is forever in his thoughts.

“Never not thinking about Kurt Cobain,” Kid Cudi tweeted.

In fact, Kid Cudi has been so inspired by Cobain’s music that he has even used it in his own work. KIDS SEE GHOSTS, his 2018 collaborative album with Kanye West, includes a sample of Cobain’s posthumous solo track “Burn The Rain” on “Cudi Montage.”

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Last year, Kid Cudi even got Cobain tattooed on him. The tattoo, which was done by artist Dr. Woo, is in tribute to both Cobain and the late singer/songwriter Daniel Johnston. For the new ink, Kid Cudi referenced Cobain’s appearance at the 1992 MTV Video Music Awards where he wore a shirt with the artwork from Johnston’s 1983 album Hi How Are You on it.

Johnston passed away in September 2019 after suffering a suspected heart attack. He was 58 years old.

“4 Kurt and salute to Daniel,” Kid Cudi says on Instagram.

 

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