Heart Of A Lion (Kid Cudi Theme Music)

Man On The Moon is a concept album split into five acts about the life so far of Cleveland rapper Kid Cudi (real name Scott Mescudi). Episodes such as his father's death and Mescudi's subsequent struggles as a teen are highlighted and this song concerns his efforts to inspire himself to be a "lion." HipHopDX.com noticed that Mescudi declares on this song that he's "not a loser." The Cleveland rapper replied: "When I was coming up you would think that I didn't have any potential to be anything. I drew a lot, so people that knew me really well thought that I was gonna end up doing something with art or drawing or being a cartoonist or something like that. But to the outside world I used to get in so much s--t in school, and I had very little motivation to do anything, you would think I was a completely worthless kid."

Many of the Man On The Moon tracks utilise heavy electronic, synth-pop beats. Cudi explained why to HipHopDX.com: "Well one thing I wanted to do was combine sounds that really bring out intense moods. Like on 'Heart Of A Lion' the synth is really intense during the 'no, no, no' part, the bridge and even at the end. It just adds to the triumphant nature; it makes it more mean. And I wanted it to always have that mean undertone like, this is no joke, this is a serious thing. Even though 'Heart Of A Lion' is kind of an uplifting joint, it's [got] some seriousness to it. It's like, 'Man, I'm not f--king playing.' The synth adds that really dope mean vibe. And I wanted that darkness on the album."