Lil Nas X: Rapper, Singer, Author?
It’s no secret that Lil Nas X dominated the music world in 2019. The young Atlanta rapper burst onto the scene with his viral hit “Old Town Road,” which ended up shattering Billboard chart records and selling millions of copies.
Lil Nas X came into his own in the spotlight in a short amount of time after that. He came out as gay (and became the only artist in history to do so while at number 1), became a fixture on the red carpet, and joined brands like Rihanna’s Fenty Skin as a brand ambassador.
Lil Nas X’s music wasn’t considered ‘country’
Throughout the history of country music in the United States, Black artists have often been ignored despite creating the same kinds of music their other counterparts make. This all came to a head last year when Billboard removed “Old Town Road” from its Hot Country Songs chart and faced criticism for not doing the same with other songs that had “country trap” influences.
Billy Ray Cyrus helped Lil Nas X gain country credibility
While “Old Town Road” still went number 1 regardless of its categorization, the original track only spent one week at the top spot on the Hot 100 chart. The remix of “Old Town Road” featuring Billy Ray Cyrus is the version that blew up and continued Lil Nas X’s record-breaking reign. The remix was the No. 1 song for 18 weeks and won Grammys for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance and Best Music Video.
Lil Nas X is a published author
After making a splash as an artist, Lil Nas X is now aiming to do the same as an author. He announced on social media that he’s “dropping the best kids’ book of all time soon.”
The book is called C is for Country, and the cover features a cartoon version of Lil Nas X riding a horse and wearing his famous pink Versace red carpet look. C is for Country will be released on January 5, 2021 and is being published by Random House.
What will Lil Nas X’s book ‘C is for Country’ be about?
Lil Nas X has revealed very little details about the book other than the title and cover. Because it’s a children’s book and the title makes a reference to learning the alphabet, it’s likely that the book will feature Lil Nas X teaching kids a different word for every letter.
C is for Country is sure to inspire children like him who probably didn’t see successful Black artists living their dream as a country music artist. Who knows? Maybe one day years from now someone who read C is for Country will grow up to be a successful artist themselves.
