Kid Cudi is no stranger to pushing the cultural norms around masculinity in hip hop.
The 37-year-old multi-hyphenate has been known to cause a stir online because of his inclusive fashion choices, famously wearing a dress on Saturday Night Live earlier this year to memorialize Kurt Cobain. So when the rapper recently took to his Instagram to post a “Mando Cud” selfie while rocking a colorful manicure and Mandalorian-esque helmet, it was no surprise that internet riff-raff harassed him in the comments section.
Cudi took to Twitter over the weekend to call out all the haters who didn’t like his painted nails, telling them, “please don’t buy my albums” and “don’t come to my shows.”
Instead, Cudi instructed them to “fuck way off.”
In 2014, the rapper found himself at the center of online discussion because he wore a crop top during a performance at Coachella — a fashion choice that likely wouldn’t even raise eyebrows by today’s more progressive standards. The dress Cudi wore during his SNL performance earlier this year, designed by Virgil Abloh, was a decision long in the making.
While appearing on HBO’s The Shop: Uninterrupted, he noted that the look was a nod to the late Nirvana frontman. “The image of seeing Kurt Cobain in a dress was very rock ’n roll to me,” he said. “That was cool. So I already made my mind up years ago that I wanted to do this. And it’s cool because I’m also giving confidence to the kids and telling them to be themselves and do what they want to do.”
And even though hate prompted Cudi to turn off comments on his Instagram post, his decision to do so was met with plenty of praise online.
It’s refreshing to see this much love for a man who’s not afraid to break gendered boundaries.
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