Lil Nas X says the music industry sanitises queerness. Image via Twitter @LilNasX
‘Be gay without being gay’: Lil Nas X says industry ‘sanitises’ queer artists
‘It’s always been, Okay, if you’re gay, this needs sanitising’: Award-winning rapper Lil Nas X says the industry ‘censors’ LGBTQI+ artists.
Lil Nas X says the music industry sanitises queerness. Image via Twitter @LilNasX
American musician Lil Nas X has been an unstoppable force in the music industry. The Grammy award-winning star has also been a prominent voice for the LGBTQI+ community, often making headlines for the bold queer representation in his music videos.
In an interview with CBS, the Old Town Road hitmaker said that although he’s much more “out there” with his sexuality, he feels the industry “sanitises” queer artists.
LIL NAS X’S COMING OUT STORY
Lil Nas X subtly came out as gay on 30 June 2019 in a tweet. He pointed his fans to the lyrics of his single c7osure which read: “Ain’t no more actin’ that forecast say I should just let me grow. No more red light for me baby, only green.”
His tweet read: “Some of y’all already known, some of y’all don’t care, some y’all not gone fwm no more. But before this month ends I want y’all to listen closely to c7osure.”
‘SANITISING’ QUEER ARTISTS
On Sunday 2 January, the star joined CBS for an interview about his music career. The 22-year-old tackled a few topics including how he feels he’s “bloomed” into a new version of himself and his chart-topping debut album Montero.
The rapper is not the first openly gay artist, but he says he feels like he’s “definitely much more ‘out there’ with it.”
Speaking on being queer in the music industry he said: “It’s always been, ‘Okay, if you’re gay, this needs sanitising. Let’s not include anything sexual.’”
“It’s like ‘be gay without being gay. We don’t wanna know what happens behind closed doors, or we don’t want you to express that.”
“I’m saying that I’m gonna do that if I want to. And I want every other artist to feel the same way.”
ALSO READ: TikToker uses app to get ‘The Rock’ action figure to Lil Nas X [watch]
LIL NAS X’s 2021 ACHIEVEMENTS
2021 was an exceptional year for the star rapper. He released his debut album Montero and scored his second Billboard number one hit for Montero (Call Me By Your Name).
His music video for Industry Baby featuring Jack Harlow also caused quite a stir. The video saw Lil Nas X dancing nude.
Lil Nas X also achieved five Grammy nominations ahead of the 2022 awards. He is nominated in the Song of the Year, Record of the Year and Best Music Video categories for Montero(Call Me By Your Name).
ALSO READ: ‘Montero’ high: Lil Nas X took magic mushrooms for album inspiration
