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Lil Nas X

Lil Nas X

ALL ARTIST INFO IS PULLED FROM PUBLICLY AVAILABLE DATA.
IF YOU REPRESENT THIS ARTIST AND WOULD LIKE TO VERIFY YOUR PAGE OR UPDATE THE INFO, Click Here
birthday
9th
April, 1999
Birth Place
Lithia Springs, Georgia, U.S.
Birth Sign
aries
Biography

Lil Nas X is Montero Lamar Hill, a rapper and singer-songwriter from Lithia Springs, Georgia. He’s best known for blending country and hip-hop on tracks like the viral smash-hit “Old Town Road.”  The rap-country hybrid track made it to the top of the Billboard Hot 100 and stayed there for 19 straight weeks. Meanwhile, the song surpassed a billion streams on Spotify and millions more on Amazon Music, Deezer, and YouTube Music. 

Want to know who Lil Nas X is and how he made it big in the music industry? Keep reading.

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instruments played
Vocals
Associated Acts

Take a Daytrip Billy Ray Cyrus

Education

Lithia Springs High School University of West Georgia

Genres

Country rap hip hop trap pop

Occupation

Rapper singer songwriter

Website

lilnasx.com

Years Active

2018 present

Name

Lil Nas X

Wiki Link

Who Is Lil Nas X?

Montero Lamar Hill was raised by his father, who was a gospel singer, after his parents divorced. Before moving in with his father, he’d lived with his mother and grandmother near Atlanta. He started playing the trumpet in fourth grade and was even first chair by middle school, but later quit. It was hard for Montero to leave the Atlanta area at first, but he doesn’t regret it now. He’s quoted as saying, “There’s so much shit going on in Atlanta – if I would have stayed there, I would have fallen in with the wrong crowd.”  Montero started uploading songs to Soundcloud when he was a high schooler in Georgia. Growing up, he wrestled with his homosexuality throughout high school, dealing with the fear of homophobia and the potential for a negative response from peers. However, despite his struggles, he made a name for himself online thanks to his mastery of internet culture.  Montero found success on platforms like Twitter and Vine long before he broke through in music. He ran Nicki Minaj fan accounts on Twitter at the time, gaining a following on the site through his Nicki-related activity. While Montero originally denied being behind these accounts, the 20-year-old rapper went on to confirm that he was a Nicki fan, explaining that he didn’t want others to think he was gay before he had come out. 

How He Became a Star 

Lil Nas X put out “Old Town Road” in 2018 using a beat he bought for $30 online. The beat features a banjo sample from a Nine Inch Nails song, “34 Ghosts IV.” Using his knowledge of meme culture, Lil Nas X made the song a viral sensation on TikTok. Even before the remix for the track came out, “Old Town Road” made it to No. 19 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart.  However, Billboard later removed the song from the country chart, a controversial move that attracted the ire of numerous music critics. Some called “Old Town Road’s” removal from the country charts racist. Nevertheless, the track remained a hit on country radio stations. He eventually won a Grammy for Best Music Video and Best Pop Duo/Group Performance and a Song of the Year award from Apple Music. After the release of the Billy Ray Cyrus remix of “Old Town Road,” Lil Nas X was a household name. In fact, that release broke Drake’s record for most U.S. streams in one week and kept a Taylor Swift single out of the top spot. He released 7, his debut EP, on June 21, 2019. Featuring “Old Town Road,” “Rodeo,” “Panini,” and several other tracks, the EP includes guest appearances from Travis Barker and Cardi B.

Coming Out and Further Success

Following the success of his EP, Montero felt that it was time for him to publicly come out. He let his fans know that he was gay on June 30, 2019, the last day of Pride Month. Montero knew that coming out would cause backlash from both the country music scene and the hip-hop scene, two genres that are known for homophobia.  While there were some negative responses to Montero’s coming out, they were far outweighed by positive ones. Lil Nas X continued to thrive in the music industry, and he put out several Platinum-certified singles in 2020. He has received some backlash and public outrage for “pushing the gay agenda” in one of his more recent music videos, but he continues to thrive.  In 2021, Lil Nas X released three more singles, including “Industry Baby,” a track featuring Jack Harlow.

The “Satan Shoes” Controversy 

In addition to his music career, Lil Nas X also serves as the creative director for the fashion collective MSCHF. He’s a big fan of fashion, and he works closely alongside stylist Hodo Musa for all of his outfits. Musa is also a part of MSCHF and handles many of the visual elements of Lil Nas X’s brand. In 2021, Montero and MSCHF put out what are affectionately known as the “Satan Shoes,” which are touted to contain exactly one drop of human blood. The sneakers are modded Nike Air Max 97s, but MSCHF was not authorized to modify or sell the shoes by Nike.  In response to the sale of 665 pairs of “Satan Shoes” (and the saving of the 666th pair as a giveaway prize), Nike was granted a temporary restraining order that prevented MSCHF from making or selling any more pairs. Many questioned the backlash against these shoes, especially considering that skateboarder Tony Hawk had recently released skateboards with blood painted on them.  The shoes were loosely released as merch after Lil Nas X dropped the official video for “Montero (Call Me By Your Name).” The highly controversial video features Montero, who seduces a devil-like figure. Conservative politicians, pastors, and other public figures condemned the video – and the shoes – but that didn’t do anything to stop Montero or MSCHF.

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