Lil Nas X wants to 'open doors' for 'other queer people to simply exist'
In honor of Pride Month, NBC Out is highlighting and celebrating a new generation of LGBTQ trailblazers, creators and newsmakers.
In honor of Pride Month, NBC Out is highlighting and celebrating a new generation of LGBTQ trailblazers, creators and newsmakers. Visit our full #Pride30 list here.
Four years ago, he was a college dropout sleeping on his sister’s floor. Today, he’s one of the music industry’s biggest stars.
Ever since Lil Nas X, 23, made Billboard history in 2019 with “Old Town Road,” which holds the record for being the longest-running song at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, he has blown past detractors’ expectations that he would be a one-hit wonder.
His debut album opened at No. 2 on the Billboard 200 in September and went platinum in February. Featuring Doja Cat, Megan Thee Stallion and Jack Harlow, “Montero” — titled after his birth name, Montero Lamar Hill — paints pictures of Lil Nas X’s personal past and love life.
As fans awaited the album, he shared a “baby registry” highlighting an LGBTQ rights or other human rights nonprofit organization for each of the album’s 15 tracks, encouraging fans to donate to his “little bundle of joy.” After the album was released, 11 of its songs immediately charted on the Hot 100, three of them breaking into the top 10.
Rating: 5