Lil Nas X

Lil Nas X Takes Us Behind The Scenes Of His “Industry Baby” Video With Jack Harlow

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Chances are, you might be one of the many people who have driven the raunchy and flat-out awesome video for Lil Nas X’s “Industry Baby” featuring Jack Harlow to 160 million views on YouTube (and counting). You know, the one where Nas dances naked in a prison shower along with an army of equally naked and totally ripped backup dancers? In the clip, he breaks out of his prison cell in a metaphorical nod to removing the handcuffs placed on him by the music industry and now we know a heckuva lot more about the inspiration for the video thanks to the latest behind-the-scenes look in the Vevo Footnotes series.

The new clip has Pop-Up Video-style notes to every hidden reference and then some. “I wanted to go to a place people would least expect me to go in a music video,” Nas says early in the clip. “An overly masculine place and make it gay asf. I also wanted to visualize the theme of breaking free from the shackles society places on you.”

We learn that the Grammy statues in his jail cell are indeed his actual awards and that the security guard that he punches out while he makes his escape is played by Teen Wolf star Colton Haynes. Nas also confirms that while the video itself wasn’t inspired by The Shawshank Redemption, the escape through a hole in the wall with a pickaxe that Jack Harlow sneaks him was indeed inspired by the film.

Director Christian Breslauer chimes in at one point to explain the underlying point of the video:

“This visual is essentially a giant metaphor to represent Nas’s unwillingness to conform to the industry standards or be caged in because of his beliefs. No matter the scenario he will be who he is and no prison is strong enough to contain him.”

But the best part comes towards the end, when Nas admits that, “the hardest part of making this music video? Honestly? Twerking in front of Jack Harlow. Very uncomfortable.”

Watch the “Industry Baby” Vevo Footnotes clip above and listen to Lil Nas X’s latest album, Montero, out now via Columbia.

Jack Harlow is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Lil Nas X Says His Collaboration Bucket List Includes SZA, Playboi Carti, Ariana Grande and More

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The world is not enough for Lil Nas X, who on his latest album Montero alone, has tracks with Doja Cat, Megan Thee Stallion, Jack Harlow, and even Elton freakin’ John. Let’s not forget the countless versions of “Old Town Road” that have included BTS, Billy Ray Cyrus, Young Thug, and Diplo. So you gotta give it up for his insatiable thirst to continue to collaborate with other like-minded pop stars and we’re pretty sure they’d jump at the opportunity to work with him too.

In what might constitute this week’s most exciting 15 seconds, a recent TikTok post from Lil Nas X laid out images of what a robotic voice introduced as “Artists who I want to make a song with.” The post flashed photos of Willow, Playboi Carti, SZA, Azealia Banks, Kid Cudi, The Kid LAROI, Rema, Ariana Grande, Lady Gaga, Tyler, The Creator, and Cardi B (“again”.)

The post comes after the early September hoopla regarding how Lil Nas X had no Black male guests on the Montero tracklist. When Lil Nas X posited that perhaps they didn’t want to work with him, Kid Cudi responded, saying essentially that he was game.

Let’s face it, Lil Nas X has really got this social media thing down and it’s probably a good bet that at least half of those bucket list collaborators end up on a track with him at some point.

Lil Nas X Is Hyped Up About 100 Thieves Competing In The ‘League Of Legends’ World Championship

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The 2021 League Of Legends World Championship has been taking place and the matches have been really exciting so far. One person, that’s been really enjoying them? Lil Nas X. His enjoyment of video games isn’t a secret. He’s a huge fan of Sonic The Hedgehog and did a livestream concert inside Roblox.

Lil Nas X is also a big fan of the League Of Legends team 100 Thieves. He’s so much of a fan that he decided to do create a hype video to celebrate the 2021 League Of Legends World Championship featuring a completely unique compilation of Lil Nas X’s hits “Thats What I Want” and “Industry Baby.” The result is a great hype video featuring 100 Thieves member JhbTeam dancing around with visions of Lil Nas X performing inside the LCS Championship trophy. The behind the scenes footage from the shoot is also quite enjoyable.

Anyone that wants to check out 100 Thieves in the League Of Legends World Championship can find them competing online at Lolesports.com They’re currently in the group stage, coming off a loss to Edward Gaming, but they’ll get a second shot at getting a win on Tuesday when they take on FocusMe.

If they manage to make a title run maybe we’ll get an opportunity to see Lil Nas X celebrating it. We’re also going to eagerly anticipate more crossovers with him and the world of gaming.

Lil Nas X Hopes To Work With Frank Ocean After Meeting Him At The Met Gala

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Lil Nas X expressed his wish to work with Frank Ocean after meeting him at the Met Gala this past month. The younger artist looks up to Frank for obvious reasons and was able to let him know how much he means to Nas when they spoke. Nas also told Frank that he wants to collaborate with him, according to an interview the “Industry Baby” rapper gave to Andy Cohen on his SiriusXM radio show.

“I feel like I’ve met so many great people, but definitely Frank Ocean is top of my list,” Nas enthused. “Because for one, he represents a lot to me, and you’d never see Frank Ocean anywhere. He’s one of those people that are not real, you know? Outside of social media that was the first time we met, like, ever… [He was] giving props and congratulations and whatnot. And I was just saying the same thing to him. And just how much his music has shaped my life and [how I’m] hoping to collaborate with him.”

In a prior interview with Apple Music’s Zane Lowe, Nas addressed the impact that performers like Frank Ocean and Tyler The Creator had on him growing up. “I think artists like Frank and Tyler, they made it easier for me to be where I am, comfortably,” he said.

Watch Lil Nas X’s interview with Andy Cohen above.

Dolly Parton Says She’s ‘Honored’ And ‘Flattered’ That Lil Nas X Covered ‘Jolene’

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Lil Nas X likes to mix genres. Country, hip-hop, and pop have all intermingled in his hit songs. So his recent cover of Dolly Parton’s “Jolene” shouldn’t come as a surprise. He delivered the cover of Parton’s 1973 song during an appearance on BBC Radio 1’s Live Lounge last week, where he also performed “That’s What I Want,” “Dead Right Now,” and “Montero (Call Me By Your Name)” off his new album, Montero.

After finally getting a chance to watch the performance, Parton had nothing but praise. “I was so excited when someone told me that Lil Nas X had done my song #Jolene,” she wrote. ” I had to find it and listen to it immediately…and it’s really good. Of course, I love him anyway. I was surprised and I’m honored and flattered. I hope he does good for both of us. Thank you @LilNasX.”

Lil Nas caught wind of her comments and had a short yet excited reaction to it, writing, simply, “HOLY SH*T.” What’s more, Lil Nas currently has three songs simultaneously in the top 10 on the Billboard singles chart: “Industry Baby” at No. 2, “Montero (Call Me By Your Name)” at No. 9, and “That’s What I Want” at No. 10.

Lil Nas X Thinks He Would Never Have Come Out If ‘Old Town Road’ Wasn’t So Successful

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In a new interview with XXL, Lil Nas X recounts coming out in the wake of the success of his hit song “Old Town Road,” calling it a “duty” to represent other queer people within hip-hop. He previously called the making of his song “Montero (Call Me By Your Name)” therapeutic for him after coming out, which he tells XXL is something he would not have done had “Old Town Road” not been so popular and successful.

“I don’t think I would have ever came out,” he says. “I honestly felt like it was kind of my duty. Especially if I wanted to move forward. And what I was doing, because authenticity is very real, and I feel like people can see right through that. And that’s a part of me.”

His reluctance is understandable. While his announcement was greeted with plenty of acceptance, there were also those who rejected him — as he rightly predicted they would when he refused to admit to being a Nicki Minaj stan. Almost immediately, he faced backlash from other famous figures. He was forced to check Kevin Hart on The Shop over Hart’s old homophobic bits, while in the wake of his success, he’s had to field knee-jerk reactions from other rappers like Dave East, Joyner Lucas, and Boosie Badazz, while shutting down Twitter commenters who claim he’s “being gay for success.”

Nas also had a hard time recruiting other rappers to feature on his debut album Montero, telling a fan on Twitter, “maybe they didn’t want to work with me.” Fortunately, he’s got others on his side such as Kid Cudi, who believes Nas will “break down” the “cloud of homophobia” stifling hip-hop simply by being an example to the youth who might feel left out right now.

Lizzo Praised Lil Nas X’s Debut Album ‘Montero’ With A Heartfelt, Celebratory Tweet

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Lizzo is the kind of artist who is always ready to celebrate others. Maybe that’s just her nature, maybe it’s because she was grinding so long and hard before her own big break, either way, she’s the queen of recognizing when others are having a pivotal moment. And I think we can all agree that, right now, Lil Nas X is having one. After he broke out huge with the “Old Town Road” fiasco, Billy Ray Cyrus remix, record-breaking Billboard performance and more, plenty of people chalked all that extra noise up to one-hit-wonder ephemera. Little did they know he had plenty more internet-breaking to do.

Now, his debut album Montero is finally out, and doing things like landing at No. 2 on the Billboard album chart, generating three top-ten hitsgetting eleven tracks onto the chart. Lizzo was one of the first to let the young rapper know how proud she is of his success, sharing her all caps celebration on Twitter:

CONGRATULATIONS TO @LILNASX !!!! #MONTERO IS BEAUTIFUL, HEARTFELT & NECESSARY… 3 TOP 10s AND A #2 DEBUT IS A 🍾BIG DEAL🍾 YOU SHOWED US HOW TO INNOVATE AND BE TRUE TO OURSELVES—I HOPE UR HAVING CHAMPAGNE TODAY— CELEBRATE YOURSELF ❤YOU DESERVE IT IM SO PROUD OF YOU🥲

And Nas was blown away that she took the time to celebrate with him. “oh my god u did not have to congratulate me! thank you so much lizzo i’m tearing up fr 💕💕💕😢,” he responded.

Ok, now it’s time for a collab right? That’s how this works, isn’t it? We’re all more than ready.

Lil Nas X Celebrates Being ‘The First One-Hit Wonder’ With 11 ‘Billboard’ Songs At Once

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Lil Nas X is determined to have the last laugh over any of his critics — and often does. With the release of the first Billboard charts to count his debut album, Montero, he got as much ammo as he’ll need for the foreseeable future. Coming in at No. 2 on the Billboard 200 and landing three songs in the Hot 100 top 10, Nas has accomplished a pretty rare feat for any artist, let alone one dropping his official debut.

He knows it, too, thanks to a tweet from PopCrave that also noted even more songs from Montero that landed in the Hot 100 after the album’s first week. “wow,” he tweeted in response, taking the opportunity to gloat over all the detractors who figured he’d flop after “Old Town Road.” “i just became the first one hit wonder of all time to have 11 songs on billboard all at once.”

Among those songs are “Industry Baby,” the inescapable and controversial Kanye-assisted hit featuring Jack Harlow, “Montero” aka “Call Me By Your Name,” the song that sent critics from Boosie Badazz to Nike into a tizzy, “Scoop,” which features a standout verse from Doja Cat (who replaced Ski Mask The Slump God), and “Dolla Sign Slime,” the song that Drake missed out on but Megan Thee Stallion killed (in a good way).

Lil Nas X’s ‘That’s What I Want’ Debut Gives Him Three Songs Simultaneously In The Hot 100 Chart’s Top 10

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When “Old Town Road” was becoming the biggest song of all time in terms of chart performance, there was real concern that Lil Nas X would be a one-hit wonder. As we now know, though, the rapper has gone on to have multiple hits since then. In fact, he has three hits right now: On the new Billboard Hot 100 chart dated October 2, Lil Nas X has a trio of songs in the top 10.

New to the top 10 is the recently released single “That’s What I Want,” which debuts in the No. 10 spot. Elsewhere, “Montero (Call Me By Your Name)” is at No. 9, while “Industry Baby” currently sits at No. 2, its Hot 100 peak. As for the song that claimed the throne this week, that’s The Kid Laroi and Justin Bieber’s “Stay,” which is now No. 1 for a sixth total week.

Having three songs in the top 10 is impressive and not something that happens all that often, but it’s also far from the most top-10 songs in a single week. That honor belongs to Drake, who landed an unprecedented nine songs in the Hot 100’s top 10 following the recent release of Certified Lover Boy. Two songs from that album are represented on this week’s top 10: “Way 2 Sexy” is at No. 3 and “Knife Talk” is at No. 8.