Lil Nas X’s official entrance into the Hollywood music scene took place after the release of his hit single Old Town Road in 2019. Ever since then, Lil Nas X frequently made it into pop music conversations and remained on the radar, especially after coming out as gay through his song, C7osure. During his time as a well-known celebrity, Lil Nas X has managed to be a part of several controversies. With that being said, let’s recount some of these more notable controversies so far during the career of Lil Nas X:
1. Industry Baby Song and Music Video
His newest single, Industry Baby features production by Take a Daytrip and Kanye West as it sheds light on Nas finding his confidence and proving anyone who ever doubted his staying power, wrong. The song is the most recent release set to be part of his upcoming album entitled Montero, which is expected to arrive later this year.
The song and music video cannot be experienced separately as the audio and visuals are very well intertwined in the storytelling. The controversy of this latest work of art stems from the abundance of sexual scenes featuring naked men dancing together in the same room. Despite the imagery that some viewers may find to be unique, the duration of the video showcases extremely high production quality, and even references to iconic prison films and TV shows such as Shawshank Redemption and Prison Break. On top of all that, Jack Harlow makes an appearance as Lil Nas X’s fellow inmate.
2. Montero (Call Me By Your Name) Music Video
Similar to the latest release of Industry Baby by Lil Nas X, his previous Montero (Call Me By Your Name) Music Video also garnered attention on social media. Backlash stemmed from scenes within the music video where Nas was seen dancing suggestively with a figure who resembled Satan. The repeated sexual and satanic symbolism is what led this work to be deemed controversial.
3. Lil Nas X Nike Air Max 97 “Satan Shoes”
Soon after the release of the similarly controversial music video for Montero (Call Me By Your Name), Lil Nas X’s customized shoe dubbed the “Satan Shoes” dropped. The sneaker was the product of a collaboration between the artist and clothing brand Mschf. Despite the creative artistic intentions, the shoes garnered a huge amount of backlash due to their offensive satanic symbols and imagery. Furthermore, the parties involved in the release of the shoe also faced legal action from Nike, as the company was afraid that the sneakers were “likely to cause confusion and dilution and create an erroneous association”.
4. Lil Nas X Attends a Party Amidst COVID
Just recently, Lil Nas X made controversial headlines once more as he was spotted attending a large gathering amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. The party was allegedly thrown by fellow celebrity, Austin Mahomes at the Wish Mansion. The surfaced clips of Lil Nas X at the party proved to be more upsetting to fans and online accounts as he mocked church gatherings before the actual event on social media.
5. Is ‘Old Town Road’ Country Music?
Soon after the song that carried Lil Nas X to fame made its way onto Billboard’s Hot Country chart, a debate began. Different opinions on whether or not Old Town Road should be classified as country music divided many of the artist’s fans. However, as the saying goes, all publicity is good publicity, and the controversy that stemmed from this song only proved to be beneficial for Lil Nas X’s music and career.
Wanna read up more on the Lil Nas X Nike Air Max 97 “Satan Shoes” that sparked controversy? Head over to the following article on This Lil Nas X Shoe Is Courting a Lot of Controversy.
