Did 'Old Town Road' Rapper Lil Nas X Come Out as Gay? - Variety

Contents:

• 'OLD TOWN ROAD' RAPPER LIL NAS X APPEARS TO E OUT AS GAY
• LIL NAS X TRIED TO EXPLA WHY HE ME OUT AS GAY. THEN KEV HART TERPTED HIM
• LIL NAS X COM OUT AS GAY
• HOW LIL NAS X IS REVOLUTNIZG HIP-HOP AS AN EMPOWERED GAY STAR
• LIL NAS X TRIED TO EXPLA WHY HE ME OUT AS GAY. KEV HART: “SO WHAT?”
• LIL NAS X COM OUT AS GAY WORLD PRI POST: 'I THOUGHT I MA IT OBV'
• LIL NAS X MAK HISTORY AS FIRST OPENLY GAY COUNTRY MIC ASSOCIATN AWARD NOMEE
• LIL NAS X RELLS FAY'S HEARTBREAKG REACTN TO HIM COMG OUT AS GAY
• LIL NAS X WAS 'PHED BY THE UNIVERSE' TO PUBLICLY COME OUT AS GAY AFTER 'OLD TOWN ROAD' SUCCS
• LIL NAS X OPENED UP ABOUT THE MICROAGGRSNS HE EXPERIENCED BEFORE COMG OUT AS GAY AND THE PRSURE HE’S FACED SCE
• “OLD TOWN ROAD” RAPPER LIL NAS X REVEALS WHAT PHED HIM TO COME OUT AS GAY

'OLD TOWN ROAD' RAPPER LIL NAS X APPEARS TO E OUT AS GAY

"After the "Old Town Road" rapper explaed that he grew up "to hate this s---, " reference to beg gay, edian Kev Hart terjected and asked Nas said that "if you're really om the hood, you know, " and add that he wanted to show that "the ol du wh the song on top of everythg" g out meant "don't really matter. Lil Nas X got ndid about why he chose to e out as gay on an episo of HBO's "The Shop" — and his fans have taken to Twter to fend the talk show, which is executive produced by NBA superstar LeBron Jam, Lil Nas was joed by a few guts cludg actor and edian Kev Hart and the show's -creator Pl Rivera. "Homosexualy, gay people, " Lil Nas said.

—Nicki_Nicki_Nicki (@All_NickiMaj) September 4, 2019—David (@Dreams_on_Paper) September 4, 2019—Commanr Slay (@natayiu) September 4, 2019Hart, who apologized for homophobic jok he ma durg his stand-ups earlier this year, ma a pot to tell Lil Nas that " no way, shape or form" he had to fend who he is (a part that wasn't the clip shared to Twter). However, some people on Twter thought the edian me on too strong, pecially due to his prev homophobic jok.

LIL NAS X TRIED TO EXPLA WHY HE ME OUT AS GAY. THEN KEV HART TERPTED HIM

Lil Nas X is gettg praise for how he handled a nversatn about homosexualy wh edian Kev Hart. Before the rapper uld rpond, Hart – who stepped down om hostg the Osrs 2018 after homophobic tweets he’d ma years earlier rurfaced – terjected. “He said he was gay, ” Hart said.

“Homosexualy, gay people, ” Lil Nas said. Lil Nas posted a seri of tweets on the last day of Pri month, where he tend to share wh his followers that he intifi as gay.

A seri of homophobic tweets Hart ma between 2009 and 2011 drew public scty late last year. Today (June 30), Lil Nas X me out as gay, a source close to the suatn tells Pchfork.

LIL NAS X COM OUT AS GAY

The rapper and sger me out as gay June 2019 and acknowledged an terview at the time that LGBTQ+ people “aren’t really accepted” eher untry mic or rap muni.

He also touched on how the mic dtry wants to package gay artists.

“It’s always been, ‘OK, if you’re gay, this needs to be sanised. It’s like, ‘Be gay whout beg gay. Last year, Lil Nas X said he felt “bad” for DaBaby after the rapper suffered huge backlash for makg homophobic ments onstage.

HOW LIL NAS X IS REVOLUTNIZG HIP-HOP AS AN EMPOWERED GAY STAR

"I know we promised to never e out publicly, I know we promised to never be ‘that’ type of gay person, I know we promised to die wh the secret, but this will open doors for many other queer people to simply exist, " he add that g out was difficult for him, and people acced him of "phg an agenda.

He said he was raised to believe that homosexualy "is never gog to be OK, " and he was aaid he would alienate fans. “I know the people who listen to this the most, and they’re not acceptg of homosexualy, ” he said at the, durg Pri Month, he changed his md. What a difference a few trmatic months n make: The Nas who has reemerged is, he says, “a totally different person” — an outspoken and empowered gay man unaaid to exprs tth his art.

And while he avoids makg grandse statements about beg a pneer or a trailblazer for the LGBTQ muny — “Let’s fuck’ go, gay agenda! Rap and R&B artists om Frank Ocean and Tyler, the Creator (both of whom Nas acknowledg as spiratns) to Azealia Banks, Le1f and Janelle Monáe have announced, acknowledged, kd of acknowledged or simply not nied beg gay or bisexual. “Hontly, I believe the panmic helped me get out of the ia of tryg to please everybody, and the ia of ‘He’s a ol gay person; he’s an acceptable gay person, ’” Nas says.

LIL NAS X TRIED TO EXPLA WHY HE ME OUT AS GAY. KEV HART: “SO WHAT?”

’ Y’all hate gay ppl and don’t hi . ” On a lighter, more characteristic note, shortly after he me out publicly, he tweeted: “Jt got news that I’m gay and I will no longer be streamg my mic.

Intentnally or not, his prence as a proud, succsful gay man has led others to reveal their prejudic. At the time of this story’s publitn, no fewer than five major rappers — none of whom Nas had mentned songs or statements — have publicly and flagrantly displayed their homophobia rponse to his stance, most promently DaBaby. “Historilly, there has been a lot of homophobia the hip-hop world, ” John ntu.

LIL NAS X COM OUT AS GAY WORLD PRI POST: 'I THOUGHT I MA IT OBV'

“The hont tth is, I don’t want to speak on a lot of the homophobia wh rap bee I feel like this is a very dangero playg field, ” he says. “And I was really happy to see such an artsy gay film, you know?

He says he realized he was gay as early as age 5.

” On his recent sgle “Sun Go Down, ” he sgs, “The gay thoughts would always hnt me / I prayed God would take om me. At first he nied nng the fan acunts, later claimg he was ncerned that people would thk meant he was gay — before he stopped rg about that.

LIL NAS X MAK HISTORY AS FIRST OPENLY GAY COUNTRY MIC ASSOCIATN AWARD NOMEE

“Before that, there was a guy who wasn’t my boyiend, but we met middle school and we talked, after we both found out that each other were gay. Enunterg homophobia “bred a lot of self-hate, ” he reveals, “but also ma me stronger. The "Old Town Road" rapper me out as gay Nas X said he was terrified when he publicly me out 2019 bee of his upbrgg and the homophobia he said he saw the mic "Indtry Baby" sger recently chatted wh Out magaze and relled the self-hatred he ternalized when growg up the South.

"Growg up the Atlanta area, I [saw] a lot of microaggrsns towards homosexualy, " Lil Nas X explaed.

LIL NAS X RELLS FAY'S HEARTBREAKG REACTN TO HIM COMG OUT AS GAY

"Sce g out, Lil Nas X said he's been tryg to make space the dtry for more gay artists of lor. Lil Nas X has explaed why he cid to e out publicly as gay — durg a nversatn that end up beg more about Kev Hart, the edian who terpted him.

LIL NAS X WAS 'PHED BY THE UNIVERSE' TO PUBLICLY COME OUT AS GAY AFTER 'OLD TOWN ROAD' SUCCS

“He said he was gay! Lil Nas X ntued by sayg he me out bee was important for him to bat anti-gay sentiment society. “I’m growg up to hate this sh, ” Lil Nas X said, referrg to beg gay.

“If you’re really om the hood, you know, ” Lil Nas X said to Hart, implyg that Hart should know about homophobia and anti-LGBTQ sentiments the black muny.

His “really om the hood” clapback to Hart was the clost any of the guts on the show got to acknowledgg that Hart has ma homophobic ments and jok the past. Hart was famoly picked to host the 2019 Osrs and then qu amid backlash after he ially refed to apologize for homophobic jok and ments he’d ma the past, sayg he'd already apologized for them and changed his ways.

LIL NAS X OPENED UP ABOUT THE MICROAGGRSNS HE EXPERIENCED BEFORE COMG OUT AS GAY AND THE PRSURE HE’S FACED SCE

Though he eventually said he was sorry for any hurt he’d ed, he did so only after repeatedly referrg to those who were upset about his old jok and ments (Hart had ed gay slurs on social media and said that if his son would e out as gay, he would break a dollhoe on his head) as trolls and haters. It's uniquely puzzlg that Hart was part of a natnal nversatn about homophobic ments that st him an Osrs hostg gig, only to terpt a gay person’s answer about g out while seemg to suggt he uldn't picture the homophobia that person might have faced. Lil Nas X was lerally referrg to homophobia he grew up wh and the importance of reprentatn, and here was Hart, whose homophobic remarks and dignant apologi for said remarks ma natnal news, appearg to feign naiveté.

Hart, along wh others the discsn, went on to say that beg gay shouldn’t be an issue 2019. “What I wanna say to Lil Nas X is that no way shape or form should you have to fend [yourself] … when you have a voice and simply say ‘this’ [beg gay, ] there is no back-and-forth about what ‘this’ is. "He said he was gay.

Addnally, the rt of the male athlet and celebri did not addrs their own experienc wh homophobic sentiments sports or pop culture.

“OLD TOWN ROAD” RAPPER LIL NAS X REVEALS WHAT PHED HIM TO COME OUT AS GAY

The mic ftival Lollapalooza dropped rapper DaBaby om s lp after he ma homophobic remarks. And so he's no stranger to the variety of out that queer people are often told by homophob or, you know, like, quote, unquote, "people who really re" about what might happen to him - whether he go to hell, whether he'll go to jail or he'll do this, that and the third. It's almost like he's sayg, homophob don't actually have that great of an imagatn, and I do.

Did you get the sense that the fa of beg imperv to all the homophobia and hatred - that ever drops?

You seem to only rpect gay artists when the gay part is tucked away.