Lil Nas X is one of modern pop music’s greatest trolls, but what he won’t do is stand for miscategorization of his antics by commenters who won’t even seriously engage with his art. He’s proven himself to be the young king of clapbacks and he defended that title today after having his music once again characterized as satanic, despite it actually being about his journey of self-realization.
“The fact that lil nas x had that satanic album is the problem I have with him making Christian music,” wrote a fan account, likely in response to Nas recently posting a snippet of what appeared to be a gospel song. Nas shot back, “The devil is mentioned ONE time throughout my entire last album and the line is ‘tell the the devil i wont have him inside, i know everything’s gonna be alright.’ Y’all have spent this entire last week rewriting history over me releasing a snippet.”
The devil is mentioned ONE time throughout my entire last album and the line is “tell the the devil i wont have him inside, i know everything’s gonna be alright”. y’all have spent this entire last week rewriting history over me releasing a snippet. https://t.co/k0V2Wz9OAz
— ✟ (@LilNasX) December 4, 2023
And while Nas is 100 percent correct about the content of his debut album Montero, the confusion could be understandable considering the packaging that came with it. The title track — which doubled as the lead single — was infamous for its video featuring Nas’ devilish makeup and its plotline following Nas going from a paradise-like realm to an Alighieri-inspired hellscape where he gave a demon a lapdance.
The controversy caused by the video led to the song reaching No. 1 on the Hot 100 and a wave of reactionary coverage from conservative outlets. It looks like even going the opposite way isn’t stopping folks from still taking issue with Nas, though. It looks like dumping on the kid was the point all along, but at least he’s not alone — fellow pop-rap provocateur Doja Cat has also been battling her fair share of satanic accusations from people who apparently think Avengers is a documentary.