Las Vegas Weekly

Man of the Moment: Kid Cudi performs at Tao

Kid Cudi at Tao in The Venetian.

Photo: Al Powers

Kid Cudi might not look to be all of his 25 years, but the rapper proved on Saturday that he can party with the big boys.

Cudi, whose real name is Scott Mescudi, performed late Saturday night – OK, technically it was Sunday morning – for a near-capacity crowd at Tao.

Dressed in a T-shirt, jeans, and a gold necklace, the rapper took to the stage at about 1:30 a.m. and entertained with an energetic mini-set, including an extended version of his hit single, “Day ‘n Night.”

He also covered Tao regulars LMFAO’s track, “Shots,” for the crowd.

The performance was part of a record release party for Cudi’s new album, Man of the Moon: End of Day.

Before his show, Cudi enjoyed dinner in the main floor restaurant, where fellow rappers including Sean “Diddy” Combs, Tyrese, and Mase also had their evening meal.

Yet Diddy and co. did not join the Cudi in the nightclub afterward, likely because he was on the MGM Grand’s dime earlier that day, and hosted at Wet Republic.

Celebrities usually don’t venture off paid-appearance property for much more than a meal the day they are paid to appear somewhere. Generally speaking, such double club-dipping is considered to be poor form.

Still, there are exceptions, such as Pussycat Dolls’ lead singer Nicole Scherzinger, who partied at the Palms before and after her paid gig at Luxor last weekend.

Combs and his entourage didn’t ruffle any corporate feathers, though, and decided to keep with the previously established MGM Grand theme on Saturday. The rapper/producer/fashion designer and his crew returned to the resort after dinner and joined Floyd Mayweather’s post-fight party at Studio 54.