In a new interview with XXL Magazine, Lil Nas X admitted it was the success of ‘Old Town Road’ that motivated him to come out.
Lil Nas X – overall icon, memelord, amazing, fantastic, cool af – has been pretty open about his battle with homophobia, both inside and outside of the industry. Not only has he been a vocal supporter of marginalised communities, but also called out homophobia in hip-hop and rap. Now, in a new interview, Nas has admitted that his decision to come out in June 2019 may never have been taken if it wasn’t for the massive success of ‘Old Town Road’.
Speaking to XXL Magazine, Nas said: “I don’t think I would have ever came out. 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.”
Nas also spoke about being part of the hip-hop community as a gay black man, saying that he doesn’t feel accepted in music circles in general: “Honestly, I don’t feel as respected in hip-hop or many music places in general. 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?” he said.
It is for this reason, he claims, that he is unapologetic about his sexuality. This year, shortly after the release of his track ‘Call Me By Your Name (Montero)’, Nas tweeted a message to his younger self, saying: “I know we promised to never come out publicly, I know we promised to never be ‘that’ type of gay person, I know we promised to die with the secret, but this will open doors for many other queer people to simply exist.”
“You see this is very scary for me. people will be angry, they will say i’m pushing an agenda. but the truth is, i am. the agenda to make people stay fuck out of other people’s lives and stop dictating who they should be.” he said.
Love Hip Hop?
Get the latest Hip Hop news, features, updates and giveaways straight to your inbox Learn more
For more on this topic, follow the Hip Hop Observer.
Check out ‘Industry Baby’ by Lil Nas X and Jack Harlow:
