Musician and star of Luca Guadagnino-directed drama series We Are Who We Are, opened up about the transformative and personal impact that KIDS SEE GHOSTS, his collaborative project with Kanye West, has had on him, in a recent interview with Rolling Stone Italy.

The face on this month’s Italian cover talked about his mental health in an honest way typical of Cudi, and explained that the creation of KIDS SEE GHOSTS in 2018 gave him a guiding light. “Working on that record saved me: at the time I didn’t know if I was going to continue making music or not, and Kanye was there for me, to help me get up. At that moment I really needed it.”

He continued, “When you make music, you tell your truth: in the same way, when it came to talking about my depression, I wanted to tell my story so that people could connect with what I was experiencing. After all, most of my albums were already made up of SOS messages that I launched to the world, hoping that someone would pick them up and respond to me, making me feel less alone. As far as I’m concerned it was already evident in my songs: I did nothing but be honest and sincere.

Cudi proceeded to explain the importance of mental health and how the COVID-19 pandemic could possibly impact an individual’s state. “The lockdown has certainly changed the perception of mental health problems: many of us have had to spend much more time in the company only of ourselves, and those who were not used to it could really end up under it. Luckily I already spend a lot of time alone, so I wasn’t particularly touched from that point of view, but I know how hard it can be. I’m trying to focus on other things, like music and my podcast…”

The 36-year-old shared in June 2020 that his podcast, entitled All Love No Shit Talkin, will feature “only uplifting artists and talkin w my friends and fans. All positive vibes! It’ll be like ur hangin w me smokin and shootin the sh*t for awhile. It[‘]ll be meant to comfort the lonely.”