Lil Nas X

Lil Nas X Is Pregnant With His Album ‘Montero’ In A Hilarious Maternity Photoshoot

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Lil Nas X’s album Montero is on the way, and if there’s anybody in music who knows how to hilarious drum up attention online, it’s Nas. His latest stunt is particularly good: To promote the album, he has shared a “maternity” photoshoot for the album with which he is currently “pregnant.”

Despite how it may seem, this isn’t a reaction to Drake’s maternal Certified Lover Boy cover art, but just a fortuitous coincidence. Nas told People that when he saw Drake’s cover, he thought, “There’s no way the universe is lining up this perfect for this to happen,” Nas thought.

Nas actually came up with the maternity shoot idea after hearing Megan Thee Stallion’s verse on his song “Dolla Sign Slime” for the first time, saying, “I was like, ‘Oh my God, this is amazing,’ so I immediately called my stylist. She was like, ‘Wow, this all comes together. Your album. Your baby.’ I was like, ‘Yeah, this is my baby, huh?’ As a joke, she was like, ‘Yeah, you should do a pregnancy shoot.’ I was like, ‘You know what? That’s actually brilliant.’ So now we have this entire thing coming out, and it’s going to be amazing.”

Along with the maternity photos, Nas even had an ultrasound mocked up:

Elsewhere during the piece, he spoke about what fans can expect from the album: “You’re getting a lot of stories about me. You’re getting a lot of stories about my past and where I want to be in my love life. But they’re also a bop. I feel like I finally found a great balance between being as real as possible within my music and making a hit song.”

Check out the People feature here.

Montero is out 9/17 via Columbia Records. Pre-save it here.

Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Kid Cudi Reveals He’s Open To Working With Lil Nas X: ‘I’ll Work W U And Frolic In Rose Gardens’

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On Wednesday afternoon, Lil Nas X revealed the tracklist for his upcoming debut album, Montero. The 15-track album will include features from Jack Harlow, Doja Cat, Elton John, Megan Thee Stallion, and Miley Cyrus. Many fans shared their excitement for the upcoming collaborations, but there we others that were curious about the lack of Black male artists on the album as one noted about the singer’s upcoming project. “Lil Nas X’s album has no black male guest lol,” they wrote on Twitter. “Just women & white men. No agenda tho.” Lil Nas replied, “maybe a lot of them just don’t wanna work with me.”

Kid Cudi caught wind of Lil Nas’ response and made it very clear that he would love to work with the singer at any point in the future. “N**** ill work w u and frolic in rose gardens w u singin about my pain,” Cudi wrote in reply to Lil Nas. The singer happily accepted the offer and in a later tweet he wrote, “u heard it here first everybody. kid cudi x lil nas for montero deluxe.” Cudi confirmed the collaboration would happen in a tweet of his own that read, “Im there. Say less,” and added, “lets have our boys @takeadaytrip set it up!”

You can view the interaction between the two artists above.

Montero is out 9/17 via Columbia Records. Pre-save it here.

Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Lil Nas X Reveals Star-Studded ‘Montero’ Tracklist

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Rap star Lil Nas X has fans more hyped than ever. Ahead of the release of upcoming project MONTERO, he’s released a star-stunned tracklist. Lil Nas X Reveals Star-Studded ‘Montero’ Tracklist The album will have all sorts of wild features, per LNX’ Instagram video revealing who would be on it. Coming out on September 17, […]

Elton John Announces A Collaborative Album Featuring Lil Nas X, Nicki Minaj, Dua Lipa, And More

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Elton John has spent a lot of time working with other artists over the past year or so, and now he’s commemorating that era with The Lockdown Sessions, a new album consisting of collaborations. While the project, which is set for release on October 22, is billed as a new album, it is like a compilation in ways, as it features previously released songs on which John is featured, like Gorillaz’s “The Pink Phantom” and Miley Cyrus’ cover of Metallica’s “Nothing Else Matters.”

Aside from the aforementioned, the album features collaborations with Brandi Carlile, Charlie Puth, Dua Lipa, Eddie Vedder, Lil Nas X, Nicki Minaj, Rina Sawayama, SG Lewis, Stevie Nicks, Stevie Wonder, Surfaces, Years & Years, Young Thug, and others.

John says of the project:

“The last thing I expected to do during lockdown was make an album. But, as the pandemic went on, one‐off projects kept cropping up. Some of the recording sessions had to be done remotely, via Zoom, which I’d obviously never done before. Some of the sessions were recorded under very stringent safety regulations: working with another artist, but separated by glass screens. But all the tracks I worked on were really interesting and diverse, stuff that was completely different to anything I’m known for, stuff that took me out of my comfort zone into completely new territory. And I realized there was something weirdly familiar about working like this. At the start of my career, in the late 60s, I worked as a session musician. Working with different artists during lockdown reminded me of that. I’d come full circle: I was a session musician again. And it was still a blast.”

Check out the The Lockdown Sessions art and tracklist below.

Interscope

1. Elton John and Dua Lipa — “Cold Heart (Pnau Remix)”
2. Elton John, Young Thug and Nicki Minaj — “Always Love You”
3. Surfaces — “Learn To Fly” Feat. Elton John
4. Elton John and Charlie Puth — “After All ”
5. Rina Sawayama and Elton John — “Chosen Family”
6. Gorillaz — “The Pink Phantom” Feat. Elton John and 6lack
7. Elton John and Years And Years — “It’s a sin (global reach mix)”
8. Miley Cyrus — “Nothing Else Matters” Feat. Watt, Elton John, Yo-Yo Ma, Robert Trujillo, and Chad Smith
9. Elton John and SG Lewis — “Orbit”
10. Elton John and Brandi Carlile — “Simple Things”
11. Jimmie Allen and Elton John — “Beauty In The Bones”
12. Lil Nas X — “One Of Me” Feat. Elton John
13. Elton John and Eddie Vedder — “E-Ticket”
14. Elton John and Stevie Wonder — “Finish Line”
15. Elton John and Stevie Nicks — “Stolen Car”
16. Glen Campbell and Elton John — “I’m Not Gonna Miss You”

The Lockdown Sessions is out 10/22 via Interscope. Pre-order it here.

Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Lil Nas X Unveils His ‘Montero’ Tracklist Featuring Doja Cat, Megan Thee Stallion, And Elton John

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Slowly but surely, Lil Nas X has been unveiling more info about his upcoming album Montero. He revealed last week that the album is currently set for a September 17 release, and not long after that, she shared the cover art. The rapper teased yesterday that that tracklist would arrive today, and this morning, he tweeted, “posting tracklist in a little bit. ahhh my balls are tingling and trembling. i’m so excited.”

Now, the tracklist has arrived, and of course, it includes recent singles “Montero (Call Me By Your Name),” “Sun Goes Down,” and the Jack Harlow collaboration “Industry Baby.” Beyond that, though, it will also include features from Doja Cat, Elton John, Megan Thee Stallion, and Miley Cyrus. All in all, the project spans 15 tracks and runs for about 43 minutes.

Check out the Montero tracklist below.

1. “Montero (Call Me By Your Name)”
2. “Dead Right Now”
3. “Industry Baby” Feat. Jack Harlow
4. “That’s What I Want”
5. “The Art Of Realization”
6. “Scoop” Feat. Doja Cat
7. “One Of Me” Feat. Elton John
8. “Lost In The Citadel”
9. “Dolla Sign Slime” Feat. Megan Thee Stallion
10. “Tales Of Dominica”
11. “Sun Goes Down”
12. “Void”
13. “Don’t Want It”
14. “Life After Salem”
15. “Am I Dreaming” Feat. Miley Cyrus

Montero is out 9/17 via Columbia Records. Pre-save it here.

Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Lil Nas X Shares A Fascinating Visual Detail About His ‘Montero’ Album Art That Can’t Be Unseen

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Adding a new layer to the Montero multiverse, Lil Nas X shared some majestic album art for his forthcoming album earlier today. Depicting the rapper fully in the nude, his back arched and skin glistening, the Lisa Frank-looking design for Montero represents “a continuous loop, to represent the circle of life,” according to Nas’ follow-up tweet. Indeed, when the art is duplicated and stacked vertically, the edges of the art line up to make a continuous image.

Then, the “Industry Baby” rapper laid out some more visual inspirations for Montero, posting images of SpongeBob SquarePants and John Stephens’ Genesis II. The tracklist, he said, would arrive tomorrow.

Just a few days out from Montero‘s release, Lil Nas X has definitely been making the most of his promotional cycle, posting his (joking) take on Drake’s Certified Lover Boy emoji art and making nice with Tony Hawk on TikTok.

“Growing up in the Atlanta area, I [saw] a lot of microaggressions towards homosexuality,” Nas recently told Out Magazine in a cover story about growing up in the South and his coming out process. “Little things like going into an IHOP and hearing one of your family members say ‘look at those faggots’ to two people eating or even just a small [statement like] ‘boys don’t cry.’ Little sh*t like living in the hood, not being super into sports, and then having to go outside and pretend that I was. [I remember] pushing that part of myself in more and more, almost convincing myself that it’s not even actually there,” he added.

Meanwhile, he recently wrote of Montero, “creating this album has been therapy for me. i’ve learned to let go of trying to control people’s perception of who i am, what i can do, and where i will be. i’ve realized the only opinion of me that really matters is my own.”

Montero is out 9/17 via Columbia Records. Pre-save it here.

Lil Nas X Reveals The Fantasy-Themed Cover Art For His Debut Album, ‘Montero’

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Lil Nas X goes full-on Lisa Frank in the cover art for his debut album Montero, which he revealed today via social media along with a reminder of its release date, September 17. The cover carries over the fantasy theme from his “Montero (Call Me By Your Name)” music video, with glittering columns overlooking a placid stream, all colored in vibrant but soft shades of violet and pink. In the center of the frame, Nas himself hovers in profile (and in the nude) surrounded by a lens flare rainbow.

Nas has spent the last several months hyping up Montero‘s release and proving that no one in the music business is better at promoting a project than he is — not even Drake or Kanye, who’ve spent the last couple of weeks trying to out-troll each other but haven’t put out much (good) music between the two of them. Building on the controversy sparked by his “Montero” music video, Nas teamed up with with a shoe customizer to sell “Satan Shoes” with blood in them, riling Nike and conservative commentators alike, then doubled-down with an onstage kiss during his performance of the song on the BET Awards. Just when Nas’ detractors had reached their breaking point, he really showed out in the “Industry Baby” video, generating even more attention through homophobic rants from elder rappers. It’s all led up to September 17, when Lil Nas will release the debut album that will be sure to have everyone talking.

Montero is out 9/17 via Columbia Records. Pre-save it here.

Lil Nas X’s Latest TikTok Proves There’s No Bad Blood Between Him And Tony Hawk

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There’s definitely no bad blood between Lil Nas X and skating pro Tony Hawk, in case you were concerned. The “Montero” rapper recently shared a few Instagram photos and a TikTok where the two are holding up Hawk’s Liquid Death Mountain Water board and taking turns riding it. “That’s how you skateboard,” Nas says at the end, with the joke clearly being that Hawk was the one doing the heavy lifting.

This comes a week after Lil Nas X called out the double-standards surrounding his infamous “Satan Shoes” compared to Hawk’s limited-edition “Liquid Death” skateboard, which is made with paint that contains Hawk’s actual blood. (As a reminder, the sneakers were also made with real human blood, and, in addition to a public outcry, the rapper actually ended up getting sued by Nike. Not so much with Hawk’s skateboard, however.)

“Now that tony hawk has released skateboards with his blood painted on them, and there was no public outrage, are y’all ready to admit y’all were never actually upset over the blood in the shoes? and maybe u were mad for some other reason?” the “Industry Baby” rapper tweeted last week.

Earlier in the day, Lil Nas X shared his Montero parody of Drake’s meme-fied Certified Lover Boy album art. It’s basically the exact same look, except all the female heads have been replaced with male ones. You know, rather like Arnold Schwarzenegger in Junior.

Never change, Lil Nas X.