Lil Nas X recently announced he’s “entering his Christian era,” but not everyone is convinced.
On Friday, the “Old Town Road” rapper dropped a snippet of an upcoming untitled track with the caption, “y’all mind if I enter my Christian era”?
Almost immediately, he received backlash from people on social media claiming he is making a mockery of Christianity. Many shared that they had a hard time believing Nas X — who just last year was making artwork that used imagery of the devil, not to mention his hyper-sexualized content — had made a genuine life change.
Actor Tyrese Gibson wrote, “Y’all gone learn to stop playing with God […] God is not to be played with. From shoes with devil signs and devil’s blood in the [shoe] sole? We can all change, I get it, but I feel a way about people making a mockery of Jesus.”
Rapper Holy Gabbana also commented, “If Nas X wants to be gay, cool […] Just don’t title yourself Christian and make others believe it’s okay for us to live in habitual/intentional sin. People deserve TRUTH and I stand on the word of God.”
Throughout the week, Lil Nas X has pushed back on his critics by explaining that this song is an authentic expression.
“Y’all see everything I do as a gimmick,” he said. “When in reality, I’m just an artist expressing myself in different ways. Whether I’m a cowboy, gay, satanic, or now Christian, y’all find a problem! Y’all don’t police nobody else art like mine. Y’all hate me because I’m fun, cute and petite.”
In another post, Lil Nas X shared that the negative response upset and confused him.
“This really is crazy because all I did was post a song about asking God for hope when you feel hopeless, and y’all are acting like I posted a video of me burning a church down and peeing on a nativity scene,” Lil Nas X said.
Lil Nas X has a complex history with religion. He was raised in an Atlanta home by a pastor and former Gospel singer, but came out as gay in his teens. He shared with British GQ magazine that he felt like it was a “test.”
“[Church] was never super bad,” he said. “It was just kind of boring for me.” But by his teens, when he was living “deep in the internet,” he began to question and challenge some of those Christian beliefs. “That was one of the main reasons why I never wanted to be gay. I even thought, ‘If I have these feelings, it’s just a test. A temporary test. It’s going to go away. God is just tempting me,’” he says.
Throughout his career, he’s gained notoriety for his lewd lyrics and music videos. In 2022, he was heavily criticized for his “MONTERO” music video, where he pole dances down from heaven into hell to give Satan a lap dance. Additionally, he released a shoe in 2021 called “Satan Shoes.”
It’s unclear just how far into “his Christian era” Lil Nas X is going. It could be one song expressing how he’s wrestling with his faith. It could be a Kanye 2.0 situation. For now, only one thing is certain: Lil Nas X will not stay silent about his haters.
