Entergalactic is a television event. Co-created by Scott “Kid Cudi” Mescudi and Kenya Barris, the new animated odyssey is a stylistically shape-shifting love story between street artist Jabari (voiced by Mescudi) and photographer Meadow (Jessica Williams) that pulses with the rhythm of Cudi’s own original music. Cudi released the special alongside a brand-new album, also titled Entergalactic. Like the special it accompanies, that album is more than it seems. Along with longtime collaborator and producer Dot Da Genius, Mescudi completed work on the songs before the narrative special was even storyboarded. It’s not just an album — think of it instead as Entergalactic’s source material. We sat down with Dot to hear more about the process of working on such an ambitious project, the creation of the score soundtrack and where he thinks it might go next. 

How did Entergalactic originate?
Cudi had an idea for creating an album around a visual [concept], because he was tired of just doing a music video per album. He wanted something to accompany a body of work. We started to work on the music before there was a show. There was just a general idea for a show [that became the special]. He wrote a script, and then we just started creating music for moments in the script before there was any animation.

When you guys are building a story through just music –– not even thinking about the visuals yet –– what does that process look like?
A lot of times it’s like feeling your way through the dark. Because we’ve been doing this for such a long time, we take a lot of time exploring sonically first. Cudi has very specific taste, and he responds to whatever inspires him. I could be playing the keys and then maybe 15 minutes in, he hears a synth and a progression that he likes, and that will set it off. He’ll start exploring how that makes him feel, what he wants to talk about. And then he’ll feed me bits and pieces of ideas that he’s thinking of and we’ll talk about it and refine it, and then he just goes in and does what he does. But [Entergalactic] wasn’t very different from the way we create, because we created it before the show. Trying to make the score intentionally [to accompany] a visual was a little bit more challenging. Because the animators had to mold [the special] to the music we were making, but in the score I had to mold [the music] to the emotions the director wanted to convey. 

Did the order of the songs move around?
They definitely did move around, and they were edited. They were changed. Certain scores that were [written] for certain scenes were swapped out for other scenes. It was really the first time that I saw music just kind of being repurposed very quickly — and well, too. I feel like all the decisions [about] how to use the music and the score, even what effect they put over it to make it fit the scene, were warranted. And it was amazing to watch. The first time I really got to experience that was at the premiere. 

Ololade Olawole

Do you have a favorite moment in the series where you feel the music and the visuals combine to make something special together?
The ending sequence. Right when the show’s about to wrap up, that moment leading into “Can't Shake Her” off the album. I feel like that was a moment where it kind of summed everything up. 

This is your first time writing a score for something like this. What was that like?
It was challenging, but everyone was supportive and they got the vision. They got the sonic landscape that me and Cudi stay in. And yeah, I mean, besides having to make 30 compositions, it was fun at the end of the day.

I know that Cudi has said that he’d like to do more with Entergalactic. What do you think that would look like?
Ultimately, this is Cudi’s brainchild, so whatever he decides to do is what’s going to happen. But from what I understand, his intention was to create a series for other artists to be able to jump in and [create a new] soundtrack. 

I feel like Jabari would need to come back. Meadow would need to come back. We would need to know what happened with these characters. But there’s so many amazing artists [in the show]. Even 070 Shake’s in the show. It would be amazing if they developed her character a bit more and then told her story. I think it could be really cool, grabbing other artists and traveling to other cities as well.

The special is set in a vibrantly animated New York City. You’re from Brooklyn; how did it feel for your compositions to be soundtracking the city?
I was having a moment when I went back to New York for the premiere. Jabari’s apartment feels like Cudi’s place. And I think they did a good job of capturing the life of the city, the energy, how chaotic it can be. Sometimes bike messengers, cars, side view mirrors, that all gives me a little PTSD. Working on the score and riding around New York City for those couple of days, listening to mixes and masters, I felt like I was in the show, you know what I’m saying? It transported me into this cartoon world where I’m like, “Wow, this feels like this scene,” or “This is supposed to mimic this scene.” It’s very transformative.

This interview has been edited for clarity and length.