On March 26th, 2021 artist Lil’ Nas X released his newest song and music video MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name) to Youtube sparking a new controversy in the pop industry. The musician rose to stardom in 2019 with his hit single “Old Town Road,” a hip hop country crossover that earned him mass success as well as two Grammys. In June of 2019, Lil’ Nas X came out as gay and he has since been regarded as a role model for queer youth, especially POC queer youth, a reflection of the impact of coming out as a gay hip hop artist. 

According to X, MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name) is a song about his infatuation with a man he had recently met. “Montero” is X’s real name, while “Call Me By Your Name” directly references the Luca Guadagnino film of the same name, a gay love story set in 1980’s Northern Italy. X explains in an interview with Genius that it was one of the first gay movies he watched and he liked the film’s portrayal of intimacy. His song uses biblical references such as “if Eve ain’t in your garden” and overtly sexual ones like “shoot a child in your mouth while I’m ridin’.” X claims that his goal is in his music is to normalize gay intimacy in music, explaining, “I feel like that’s really important for representation in general, and this is gonna open more doors for one day when somebody says this, it’s like, “Oh, that person said that and I didn’t think about it,” you know?”

Despite their provocative nature, the lyrics are tame in comparison to the music video, which has reached over 88 million views. Co-directed by Lil’ Nas and Tanu Muino, the video is composed of three major acts that use Biblical as well as Roman-Greco themes. The first scene is set in what appears to be the garden of Eden, where X is tempted by a snake to give into his lustful desires. The next scene takes place in a colosseum, where X appears shackled to identical guards all played by himself in Antoinette wigs and outfits. He then descends to hell, with the help of a stripper pole. There Lil’ Nas walks up to the devils throne and proceeds to give the devil a lap dance in leather stripper boots and Calvin Klein underwear before snapping the devil’s neck and taking his crown, gaining his power. To a majority of the general public, it is clear that Lil’ Nas X is not a Satanist, but rather used homophobic Christian discourse that homosexuality leads to an eternity in hell ironically. 

Despite overwhelmingly positive responses, the main controversy arose from the custom Nike shoes Lil’ Nas X released called “Satan’s Shoe.” The shoes are a custom made Nike Air Max 97’s claiming to have drops of human blood in them. Lil’ Nas X and his team only made 666 shoes and they sold out in under a minute. Soon after, Nike released a statement claiming not to endorse the product and have since obtained a restraining order against X’s company. Many notable public figures have also voiced their disapproval over the satanic themed shoe, with conservative politician Candace Owens notably tweeting that the shoes are “keeping black American behind.” To this, X simply responded, “don’t care and ur a flop.” South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem also expressed concern over the shoes being marketed to children and the “soul of the nation,” but X once again responded on Twitter with, “ur a whole governor and u on here tweeting about some damn shoes. do ur job!”

What many people appreciate about Lil’ Nas X is that he does not shy away from criticism. While his responses seem lighthearted and funny, the impact of Lil’ Nas X’s refusal to bow down to these bigoted criticisms is not lost. With each witty reply, the artist is making a statement that he will not let homophobic figures such as Owens and Bennet spew hateful rhetoric on Twitter without fighting back. These steadfast declarations, along with his status as a rolemodel for Black, queer youth send out a very necessary message that being unapoligetically queer and standing up to homophobia is central to his identity. While Lil’ Nas X’s MONTERO is about a private love, his pride in his identity is public and loud.