"Pursuit of Happiness" is a song by American musician

Kid Cudi Scott Ramon Seguro Mescudi (born January 30, 1984), also known by his stage name Kid Cudi ( ), is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, actor and fashion designer. Born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio, Cudi would move to New Yo ...

, released on September 15, 2009, as the third

single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...

from his debut album, '' Man on the Moon: The End of Day'' (2009). The song was produced by American

electronic rock Electronic rock is a music genre that involves a combination of rock music and electronic music, featuring instruments typically found within both genres. It originates from the late 1960s, when rock bands began incorporating electronic instrume ...

duo

Ratatat Ratatat ( ) is a Brooklyn-based electronic rock duo consisting of Mike Stroud (guitar, melodica, synthesizers, percussion) and producer Evan Mast ( bass, synthesizers, percussion). History Beginnings and first album, ''Ratatat'' (2001–200 ...

and

features Feature may refer to: Computing * Feature (CAD), could be a hole, pocket, or notch * Feature (computer vision), could be an edge, corner or blob * Feature (software design) is an intentional distinguishing characteristic of a software item ...

vocals from American

neo-psychedelic Neo-psychedelia is a diverse genre of psychedelic music that draws inspiration from the sounds of 1960s psychedelia, either updating or copying the approaches from that era. Originating in the 1970s, it has occasionally seen mainstream pop suc ...

act,

MGMT MGMT () is an American indie rock band formed in 2002 in Middletown, Connecticut. It was founded by multi-instrumentalists Andrew VanWyngarden and Ben Goldwasser. Alongside VanWyngarden and Goldwasser, MGMT's live lineup currently consists of ...

. The meaning of the song is often misconstrued with being about the positive side of a carefree lifestyle, when rather it tells a dark tale of

drinking and driving Drunk driving (or drink-driving in British English) is the act of driving under the influence of alcohol. A small increase in the blood alcohol content increases the relative risk of a motor vehicle crash. In the United States, alcohol is in ...

as well as the regret and pain associated with

drug abuse Substance abuse, also known as drug abuse, is the use of a drug in amounts or by methods which are harmful to the individual or others. It is a form of substance-related disorder. Differing definitions of drug abuse are used in public health, ...

and how it leads to

escapism Escapism is mental diversion from unpleasant or boring aspects of daily life, typically through activities involving imagination or entertainment. Escapism may be used to occupy one's self away from persistent feelings of depression or genera ...

. The song was certified diamond (10 million units) by the

Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...

(RIAA) in December 2022.It is the lowest peaking single on the Billboard Hot 100 to be certified Diamond.

Background and release

On the album, the track is titled "Pursuit of Happiness (Nightmare)", following the album's dream sequence. The final version of the song was premiered on September 4, 2009, on the

DJ Semtex DJ Semtex (born John Fairbanks; 1974) is an English DJ, author, radio DJ and presenter of Spotify's Who We Be podcast. Between 2002 and 2018, he was presenter for BBC Radio 1Xtra's weekly hip-hop show. Biography Due to complications from lymp ...

BBC Radio 1 BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including electronica, dance, ...

show. In 2021, Kid Cudi released an

acoustic version Acoustic music is music that solely or primarily uses instruments that produce sound through acoustic means, as opposed to electric or electronic means. While all music was once acoustic, the retronym "acoustic music" appeared after the adve ...

of the song, which originally premiered on

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’s Prime Day Show. The song was included on an

extended play An extended play record, usually referred to as an EP, is a musical recording that contains more tracks than a single but fewer than an album or LP record.

(EP) titled ''Prime Day Show x Kid Cudi'', issued exclusively on

Amazon Music Amazon Music (previously Amazon MP3) is a music streaming platform and online music store operated by Amazon. Launched in public beta on September 25, 2007, in January 2008 it became the first music store to sell music without digital rights man ...

, on June 17, 2021. The original song was later included on Cudi’s first

greatest hits A greatest hits album or best-of album is a type of compilation album that collects popular and commercially successful songs by a particular artist or band. While greatest hits albums are typically supported by the artist, they can also be crea ...

album ''

The Boy Who Flew to the Moon, Vol. 1 ''The Boy Who Flew to the Moon, Vol. 1'' is the first greatest hits album by American musician Kid Cudi. It was released on July 8, 2022, by Republic Records and Cudi's Wicked Awesome Records, Wicked Awesome imprint. The Compilation album, compil ...

'' (2022).

Steve Aoki Remix

Upon the song's release, American

electro house Electro house is a genre of electronic dance music characterized by heavy bass and a tempo around 130 beats per minute. The term has been used to describe the music of many ''DJ Mag'' Top 100 DJs, including Benny Benassi, Skrillex, Steve Aoki ...

Steve Aoki Steven Hiroyuki Aoki (, ; born November 30, 1977), best known as Steve Aoki, is an American DJ, record producer, music programmer, and record executive.

, produced a

remix A remix (or reorchestration) is a piece of media which has been altered or contorted from its original state by adding, removing, or changing pieces of the item. A song, piece of artwork, book, video, poem, or photograph can all be remixes. The o ...

of "Pursuit of Happiness", which went on to become as popular as the original and became a staple at Aoki's concerts. Steve Aoki released his remix on December 5, 2009. In 2012, the remix was featured on the

trailers Trailer may refer to: a Transportation * Trailer (vehicle), an unpowered vehicle pulled by a powered vehicle ** Bicycle trailer, a wheeled frame for hitching to a bicycle to tow cargo or passengers ** Full-trailer ** Semi-trailer **Horse trailer ...

for the comedy film '' Project X'' and was later included on the film's

soundtrack A soundtrack is recorded music accompanying and synchronised to the images of a motion picture, drama, book, television program, radio program, or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack o ...

. On May 1, 2012, an "Extended Steve Aoki Remix" was released via digital distribution, such as

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and

Amazon.com Amazon.com, Inc. ( ) is an American multinational technology company focusing on e-commerce, cloud computing, online advertising, digital streaming, and artificial intelligence. It has been referred to as "one of the most influential economi ...

. Also in May 2012, Kid Cudi received a nomination for Best Song from a Movie at the

MTV Movie Awards The MTV Movie & TV Awards (formerly the MTV Movie Awards) is a film and television awards show presented annually on MTV. The first MTV Movie Awards were presented in 1992. The ceremony was renamed the MTV Movie & TV Awards for its 26th editi ...

, for the Steve Aoki remix to "Pursuit of Happiness", being used in ''Project X''.

Reception

Emma Silvers of ''

SF Weekly ''SF Weekly'' was a free alternative weekly newspaper founded in the 1970s in San Francisco, California. It was distributed every Thursday, and was published by the San Francisco Print Media Company. The paper has won national journalism awards, ...

'' called the song a "self-aware 2009 party anthem — or chronicle of a person's thinking as they veer into a drunk and drugged out downward spiral, depending on how you spin it — is a pretty lonely song to begin with."

Chart performance

"Pursuit of Happiness" debuted and peaked on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 at number 59 on the week ending October 3, 2009. The following week, it fell 41 spots to number 100. The song re-entered at number 95 on the week ending January 8, 2011. As of March 2013, it sold over 2,000,000 downloads since its release. The song originally peaked at number 137 on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

, but it re-entered the chart in 2012 attaining a new peak of 72 and entered for the first time on the

Irish Singles Chart The Irish Singles Chart is the Republic of Ireland's music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association (IRMA) and compiled on their behalf by the Official Charts Company. Chart rankings are bas ...

, peaking at 24. In 2012, it has also charted for the first time in Austria, Belgium (Wallonia), France, Germany, Netherlands, Sweden and Switzerland.

Music videos

The first

music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a m ...

released, directed by Brody Baker and produced by

Josh Hartnett Joshua Daniel Hartnett (born July 21, 1978) is an American actor and producer. He first came to attention in 1997 for his role as Michael Fitzgerald in the television crime drama series '' Cracker''. He made his feature film debut in 1998 in th ...

, displays Kid Cudi at a

party A party is a gathering of people who have been invited by a host for the purposes of socializing, conversation, recreation, or as part of a festival or other commemoration or celebration of a special occasion. A party will often feature f ...

. While everyone is having a good time, the whole party goes into a slow-motion state.

does not appear in the video, however

member

Ben Goldwasser Benjamin Nicholas Hunter Goldwasser (born December 17, 1982) is an American songwriter and musician in the psychedelic rock band MGMT, for which he primarily plays keyboards and sings. In 2009, his song " Electric Feel" (co-written with bandma ...

does make an appearance. Other

cameo appearance A cameo role, also called a cameo appearance and often shortened to just cameo (), is a brief appearance of a well-known person in a work of the performing arts. These roles are generally small, many of them non-speaking ones, and are commonly eit ...

s include Cudi's then

GOOD Music GOOD Music (also known simply as GOOD, stylized as G.O.O.D. Music; a backronym for Getting Out Our Dreams) is an American record label founded by rapper Kanye West in 2004. The label signed an exclusive long-term worldwide label agreement with t ...

label-mate

Consequence Consequence may refer to: * Logical consequence, also known as a ''consequence relation'', or ''entailment'' * In operant conditioning, a result of some behavior * Consequentialism, a theory in philosophy in which the morality of an act is determi ...

, actor Jake Hoffman along with fellow

rapper Rapping (also rhyming, spitting, emceeing or MCing) is a musical form of vocal delivery that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and street vernacular". It is performed or chanted, usually over a backing beat or musical accompaniment. The ...

Johnny Polygon John W. Armour (born May 15, 1984), better known by his stage name Johnny Polygon, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter and music producer. Raised in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Polygon would meet American producer DJ Green Lantern in 2008, who offer ...

and

Drake Drake may refer to: Animals * A male duck People and fictional characters * Drake (surname), a list of people and fictional characters with the family name * Drake (given name), a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * ...

. The second music video released, directed by Megaforce, shows Kid Cudi waking up and interacting with a swiveling couch, and a party scene. The members of Ratatat are featured.

Covers and influence

In February 2010,

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

-based electro-pop folk trio Barbara, released a

cover version In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song release ...

of the song. In early 2010, Australian alternative rock band

Cloud Control Cloud Control was an Australian alternative rock band, originating from the Blue Mountains near Sydney, Australia. The band was signed to the Australian record label Ivy League Records, on which they released their first album, '' Bliss Releas ...

, covered "Pursuit of Happiness", on multiple occasions throughout their

concert tour A concert tour (or simply tour) is a series of concerts by an artist or group of artists in different cities, countries or locations. Often concert tours are named to differentiate different tours by the same artist and to associate a specific to ...

s, which received high praise. In 2010, American folk-rock singer

Lissie Elisabeth Corrin Maurus (born November 21, 1982), known as Lissie, is an American singer-songwriter. She released her debut EP, "Why You Runnin'", in November 2009. Her debut album, '' Catching a Tiger'', was released in June 2010. Her second st ...

, began covering the song live in concert. Her cover earned praise from Kid Cudi, who posted the video on his official website, commenting that Lissie did a "great job" and that it was "just really beautiful and extremely flattering." She included the cover on her

extended play An extended play record, usually referred to as an EP, is a musical recording that contains more tracks than a single but fewer than an album or LP record.

cover album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...

, ''Covered Up with Flowers'' (2011). In 2012,

-based rapper

Schoolboy Q Quincy Matthew Hanley (born October 26, 1986), better known by his stage name Schoolboy Q (stylized as ScHoolboy Q), is an American rapper. In 2009, Hanley signed to Carson-based independent record label Top Dawg Entertainment (TDE) and in late ...

sampled Sample or samples may refer to: Base meaning * Sample (statistics), a subset of a population – complete data set * Sample (signal), a digital discrete sample of a continuous analog signal * Sample (material), a specimen or small quantity of so ...

Lissie's cover version, for his song "

Hands on the Wheel "Hands on the Wheel" (stylized as "Hands on tHe WHeel") is a song by American hip hop recording artist Schoolboy Q, released on April 3, 2012 as the second single from his second album, ''Habits & Contradictions ''Habits & Contradictions'' is t ...

", taken from his album ''

Habits & Contradictions ''Habits & Contradictions'' is the second studio album by American rapper Schoolboy Q. It was released on January 14, 2012, exclusively on iTunes, by Top Dawg Entertainment. The album features guest appearances from ASAP Rocky, Jhené Aiko, Dom Ken ...

'' (2012). In June 2014, Kid Cudi and Lissie performed the song together for the very first time at

Le Divan du Monde Le Divan du Monde ('The World Divan') is a converted theatre, now functioning as a concert space, located at 75 rue des Martyrs, in the 18th arrondissement, in the Pigalle neighborhood of Paris. History At the beginning of the 19th century, th ...

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. In 2013, American rock band Nebraska Jones, also released a cover of "Pursuit of Happiness". In 2014, San Francisco-based

indie Indie is a short form of "independence" or "independent"; it may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Gaming *Independent video game development, video games created without financial backing from large companies *Indie game, any game (board ...

dream pop Dream pop (also typeset as dreampop) is a subgenre of alternative rock and neo-psychedelia that emphasizes atmosphere and sonic texture as much as pop melody. Common characteristics include breathy vocals, dense productions, and effects such as ...

musician Katie Day, released a cover version of "Pursuit of Happiness", where she played all the parts solo, supporting her melancholy sing-song with thick layers of drums, synth, piano, and eventually strings (each via keyboard). In September 2017, American rapper

KYLE Kyle or Kyles may refer to: Places Canada * Kyle, Saskatchewan, Canada Ireland * Kyle, County Laois * Kyle, County Wexford Scotland * Kyle, Ayrshire, area of Scotland which stretched across parts of modern-day East Ayrshire and South Ayrshir ...

, covered "Pursuit of Happiness", saying he chose to cover the song because it's one of his favorites and it helped him through a dark part of his life: "That song just got me just through a lot of tough times. I think Kid Cudi has this special gift to make music that can pick somebody off from a super dark place and put them in this happy, awesome, positive

Pikachu is a fictional species in the ''Pokémon'' media franchise. Designed by Atsuko Nishida and Ken Sugimori, Pikachu first appeared in the 1996 Japanese video games ''Pokémon Red'' and ''Green'' created by Game Freak and Nintendo, which were ...

filled place. And I always aspire to do the same thing. It almost taught me like why even I became a rapper in the first place."

Live performances

The song made its US television debut on the ''

Late Show with David Letterman The ''Late Show with David Letterman'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by David Letterman on CBS, the first iteration of the The Late Show (franchise), ''Late Show'' franchise. The show debuted on August 30, 1993, and was produced by ...

'' on September 11, 2009. Cudi later performed the song on September 23, 2009, on ''

Jimmy Kimmel Live ''Jimmy Kimmel Live!'' is an American late-night talk show, created and hosted by Jimmy Kimmel, broadcast on ABC. The nightly hour-long show debuted on January 26, 2003, at Hollywood Masonic Temple in Hollywood, California, as part of ABC's lead ...

''. On April 9, 2022, Cudi performed a medley of " Stars in the Sky" (the lead single for the soundtrack to the film ''

Sonic the Hedgehog 2 is a 1992 platform game developed by Sega Technical Institute (STI) for the Sega Genesis. It follows Sonic the Hedgehog (character), Sonic as he attempts to stop Doctor Eggman from stealing the Chaos Emeralds to power his space stationnamed T ...

'') and "Pursuit of Happiness" at the

Kids' Choice Awards The Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards (also known as the KCAs or Kids' Choice) is an annual American children's awards ceremony show that is produced by Nickelodeon. Usually held on a Saturday night in late March or early April, the show honors ...

for the first time.

In other media

In 2016, American singer Lissie's cover was the used for

Nike Nike often refers to: * Nike (mythology), a Greek goddess who personifies victory * Nike, Inc., a major American producer of athletic shoes, apparel, and sports equipment Nike may also refer to: People * Nike (name), a surname and feminine give ...

's Unlimited Pursuit campaign, featuring American athletes

Serena Williams Serena Jameka Williams (born September 26, 1981) is an American inactive professional tennis player. Considered among the greatest tennis players of all time, she was ranked world No. 1 in singles by the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) for ...

and

Simone Biles Simone Arianne Biles (; born March 14, 1997) is an American artistic gymnast. Her seven Olympic medals tied with Shannon Miller for the most Olympic medals won by an American gymnast. Having won 25 World Championship medals, she is the most de ...

. In 2020, the original song was heavily featured in a trailer for the Judd Apatow film ''

The King of Staten Island ''The King of Staten Island'' is a 2020 American comedy-drama film directed by Judd Apatow, from a screenplay by Apatow, Pete Davidson, and Dave Sirus. It stars Davidson, Marisa Tomei, Bill Burr, Bel Powley, Maude Apatow, and Steve Buscemi ...

'', and was also included in the film. In 2021, the song was used as part of the ''

Montreal Canadiens The Montreal CanadiensEven in English, the French spelling is always used instead of ''Canadians''. The French spelling of ''Montréal'' is also sometimes used in the English media. (french: link=no, Les Canadiens de Montréal), officially ...

'' pregame show as part of the playoff's montage.

Track listing

*Digital download #Pursuit of Happiness (featuring

) — 3:21 *CD Single (United Kingdom) #Pursuit of Happiness (featuring MGMT & Ratatat) — 3:21 *Digital download (Remix) #Pursuit of Happiness (Extended

Steve Aoki Steven Hiroyuki Aoki (, ; born November 30, 1977), best known as Steve Aoki, is an American DJ, record producer, music programmer, and record executive.

Remix) (featuring MGMT & Ratatat) — 6:13 *International EP #Pursuit of Happiness (Nightmare) (featuring MGMT & Ratatat) — 4:55 #Pursuit of Happiness (

Benny Benassi Marco "Benny" Benassi (; born 13 July 1967) is an Italian DJ, record producer and remixer. He is widely seen as a pioneer of electro house, a genre brought into the mainstream by his 2002 summer club hit " Satisfaction". He started his career ...

Remix) xtended(featuring MGMT & Ratatat) — 5:28 #Pursuit of Happiness (

Steve Aoki Steven Hiroyuki Aoki (, ; born November 30, 1977), best known as Steve Aoki, is an American DJ, record producer, music programmer, and record executive.

Remix) xtended(featuring MGMT & Ratatat) — 6:13 #Pursuit of Happiness (

Sandy Vee Sandy Julien Wilhelm (born 22 April 1975) better known by his stage name Sandy Vee, is a French music producer and songwriter. He gained much commercial and critical recognition for co-producing Rihanna's "Only Girl (In the World)", Katy Perry's ...

Remix) xtended(featuring MGMT & Ratatat) — 5:26

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pursuit Of Happiness (Kid Cudi Song) 2009 songs 2010 singles Kid Cudi songs MGMT songs Ratatat songs Songs written by Kid Cudi GOOD Music singles Universal Motown Records singles Songs about cannabis Songs about loneliness Drinking songs Songs about alcohol Songs about driving under the influence Songs about drugs Psychedelic pop songs