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It is not doubt that Kid Cudi has reached much success in the music industry in a short period of time. He has had three Grammy nominations and is featured on tracks with the likes of Jay-Z, Kanye West and Shakira. Now, Cudi is ready to take his success to a new level, as he is ready to hit the big screen.
According to MTVnews.com, Cudi, whose given name is Scott Mescudi, is making his acting debut in HBO’s new show “How to Make It in America”.
“The fact that everybody is finally getting to see me act and stuff is part of my dream coming true. It’s just really dope, and people could see me be silly. My album was so deep and serious, and that was just me showing my dark side,” Cudi said. “Acting is therapeutic — just being able to pretend to be somebody else for a little bit, it’s dope.”
The series is executively produced by the same team behind HBO’s hit show, “Entourage” which includes big names like: Mark Wahlberg, Stephen Levinson, Rob Weiss and Julian Farino. However, don’t expect A-list celebrities and luxurious lifestyles. The show is centered on two characters, Ben Epstein and Cam Calderson, played by Bryan Greenberg and Victor Rasuk, as they attempt to start their own fashion line. Cudi plays their friend Domingo Dean, a name he chose after his two older brothers. It follows their story and trials and tribulations facing normal guys in New York City.
“I’m talking about these guys work a 9-to-5 — actually, one of them doesn’t even have a job. As the story goes along you see all of the hardships that they’ve had to go through in order to achieve their dreams,” Cudi said.
Cudi has always thought about acting, but the show came as somewhat of a surprise. The show’s creator, Ian Edleman, approached Cudi one night and asked if he ever considered acting.
“Of course I was like, ‘Yeah,’ but it was in the club and I was trashed. I didn’t necessarily take him seriously. Two days later he had his assistant send me a script and I was like, ‘Wow, this is dope. I would love to be a part of this.’ ”
Cudi still had to audition for the part, and did so while he was working with Kanye West on West’s “808s & Heartbreak” record.
“I would dip away from sessions with Kanye and go rehearse my lines when nobody was around because I was very self-conscious and I didn’t want them to see me and make fun of me,” said Cudi.
The cast gets the opportunity to see all sides of New York as they film everywhere from Brooklyn to the Upper East Side. They said that was a major plus in the filming of the show.
“What was great about shooting the show was, sometimes me as a native New Yorker, I’ll find spots and we’ll start shooting and I’ll say, ‘I’ve never even seen this place before. I never even heard of this place’,” Lords of Dogtown star, Victor Rasuk said.
Bryan Greenberg, from One Tree Hill, also had positive things to say about filming in NYC.
“The cool thing about this show is, like, we’re shooting in the best locations in NYC — the best restaurants, the best clubs,” Greenberg said. “This is definitely one of the sets where all of my friends want to come visit.”
Catch the premier of “How to Make It in America” Sunday on HBO.
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