Lil Nas X exploded onto the music scene in 2018 with “Old Town Road,” and quickly proved to be far from a one-hit-wonder, keeping his fans anticipating and entertained by following up with 2019’s “Panini” and “Rodeo,” and more recently, his controversial hit song “MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name).” Featuring the young pop singer in the accompanying video, the 22-year-old gay Black man turned heads and inspired lengthy social media posts with his visuals of condemnation and sliding down a stripper pole to meet Satan himself.

Though Lil Nas X, whose real name is Montero Lamar Hill, was trying to flip the “being gay is a sin” narrative on its head, many were outraged at the video and the Georgia native’s growing artistic creativity. Always ready for a clap back, he often trolled his haters on Twitter for speaking out against “MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name,)”

writing in a March tweet, “Y’all love saying we going to hell but get upset when I actually go there lmao.”

While discussing his high-profile career and journey to stardom as a member of the LGBTQIA+ community, Lil Nas X sat down with New York Times Magazine, gracing the cover in a braided updo hairstyle and an eccentric lavender romper.

After working on his craft for several years now, he revealed to the magazine that he tries to ensure that his best work is put forward to fans,

adding “and my best is perfect” when asked if he was a perfectionist with his music.

According to New York Times, he came up with the country-hip hop hybrid tune “Old Town Road” after receiving a $30 beat that he bought on YouTube. He began writing lyrics that he thought fit, and the rest is Grammy-award winning history. Country singer Billy Ray Cyrus eventually joined the song as a featured artist, and the two have remained close since.

Shortly after the song took over 2018’s summer, Lil Nas X shocked many by publicly coming out. He told New York Times that he first came out as a gay man to his sister, who apparently already suspected it, and his brother. But when it was time to get real with his dad, he was reportedly painfully questioned whether the devil was enticing him, providing an even more candid look behind “MONTERO,”

Related Post: Lil Nas X Trolls The Saints By Teasing Them With Kirk Franklin on A “Montero” Remix

Lil Nas X decided to tell “everyone else” after visiting a gay Pride event in Britain, describing it to New York Times as, “People were waving their pride flags, and it was just so much excitement; I was like, Oh, my God, this is it.”

Fans can catch Lil Nas X on the latest cover of New York Times magazine.