Giant, wild-eyed statues of Kid Cudi suddenly appeared this week in Paris, New York City and off the coast of Long Beach, apparently marking the release of the rapper’s latest album, “INSANO.”
The 33-foot, silver-colored statues all depict the Cleveland native with his arms outstretched, with blue and red lights shining eerily through empty eye sockets and a gaping mouth.
After the first statue appeared in Paris at the Place de la Bourse, the French news agency AFP described it as depicting the rapper in a “demonic posture,” and said that his management reported it was due to start blaring music from the new 21-track album later in the day.
The Long Beach version of the 39-year-old Grammy winner’s likeness appeared on a barge in Alamitos Bay on Friday morning, according to a statement city officials posted on social media. Officials said the statue was for a “private promotional event at a local business,” but that it could be seen from any city beach along the coast.
After leaving the bay, the Cudi-carrying barge floated up and down the Long Beach shoreline till Friday evening, the city said. Over the weekend, it’s scheduled to pass by Redondo, Marina Del Rey, Santa Monica and Malibu, the Long Beach Post reported.
The new album the statue is promoting officially dropped on Friday, featuring collaborations with Travis Scott, Pharrell Williams and ASAP Rocky. According to AFP, it also includes a sample from the 1990s smash hit “The Sign” by Ace of Base.
“The responses to the album have been overwhelming,” the the rapper wrote on X, the social media site formerly known as Twitter. “I put my all into this album.”
This story originally appeared on LA Times
