Lil Nas X opens up about being gay in Hip-Hop.
Even though he failed to get a Billboard 200 number 1, but Lil Nas X still gained a lot with his latest album “MONTERO“. The album debuted at #2 on the charts with 129k equivalent units in the first week. Lil Nas also won the MTV VMA for his hit “Montero (Call Me By Your Name)” for Video of the year. He recently sat down with XXL Magazine, where he talks about being a gay man in hip-hop, among other things.
“Honestly, I don’t feel as respected in hip-hop or many music places in general,” says Lil Nas. “But these are communities that I am a part of, whether people would like it or not. This is something that I wanted to do because, not that my entire album is rap, but there are rap tracks on my album. I am a rapper. I am a pop star. I am a gay artist. But it’s like, I belong in these places, you know?”
Following the success of his mega-hit “Old Town Road,” the 22-year-old spoke about his choice to come out and declare his sexuality, claiming a duty not just to his fans and the LGBTQ+ community, but also to himself. He stated, “I honestly felt that it was kind of my obligation.” “Especially if I wished to progress.” And what I was doing, because I believe people can see straight through genuineness. And it’s a part of who I am.”
“I don’t think I would have ever came out,” Nas X says on Coming Out as Gay in June of 2019 when his hit “Old Town Road” was rocking the charts. “I honestly felt like it was kind of my duty. Especially if I wanted to move forward. And what I was doing, because authenticity is very real, and I feel like people can see right through that. And that’s a part of me.”
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He continues, “I guess through quarantine and life in general, watching every other star that was coming in and every star that has already been, I feel to level-up to the next place in life, you have to release something else. For me, I felt like [my insecurity with my sexuality] was my fear of people judging me for how I would act post-coming out. I used to ‘like’ comments where people were like, ‘Oh, I like him, because he’s not all in your face about it.’ And then I realized kind of what that was. It’s kind of like when people say, ‘Oh, I have a Black friend,’ and that kind of sits on everything that have to do with their Black history and culture, whatnot. I’m kind of like, I’m not that person, you know?”
Whether or not Hip Hop embraces him, Lil Nas X will continue to be himself while mocking his followers. The Grammy Award-winning musician joked to his 7.2 million Twitter followers on Friday (October 1) that he was no longer gay. “This gay sh*t was fun at first,” he wrote. “I miss pu**y now.” Many assumed Lil Nas X was bisexual or not homosexual at all as a result of this, however, it turns out he was kidding. Later, the “Industry Baby” singer replied with a tweet indicating that his partner had contacted him back.
Check out the full interview here.
