Isabella Garguilo
Rapper Lil Nas X has been receiving a lot of attention in the media recently, mainly because he has shaken many people up over his new music video for his song “Call Me By Your Name.” The song, both catchy and a worldwide hit, is receiving a majority of its criticism over the events and imagery depicted in the video.
When he travels down a pole into hell, with some pretty fashionable knee-high boots. He then proceeds to give a lap dance to Satan, portrayed by himself.
When viewers first saw this scene they were taken aback, as these kinds of acts performed on a Biblical character have not been quite seen before in today’s society.
Overall, the music video was visually pleasing, bringing Lil Nas X’s main vision of this song to life by embracing his sexuality and dedicating this music video to his newfound freedom.
It is clear he took the time to fully embrace his creativity to release a shell-shocking video to the public, where fans were able to get a full glimpse of his struggles of being a part of the LGBTQ+ community, even gaining new fans through the process.
Due to his depictions in the video, many are up in arms as to how much artists should freely express their sexuality. A variety of conservatives alike are aggravated over Lil Nas X’s video, mainly due to the fact that he performed a lap dance on Satan.
Conservative speaker Candace Owens took a few jabs at Lil Nas X in a series of tweets.
“You successfully got used by corporations to help further destroy our youth,” Owens tweeted on March 28, in reference to his line of Satan Shoes used to promote his song.
Conservatives have a specific set of morals and values they strictly follow, such as the belief that sexuality should not be openly discussed through the media. Simply put, if you do not agree with the imagery, symbolism, or even lyrics of the video, then it is your decision to watch or not to watch, but the constant chatter and complaining of what an artist produces only gives them the upper hand in popularity and sales.
“Loved it. I thought it was a hilarious and powerful kind of reaction to these really cruel things that gay people are told so often so I loved it for that and because it’s a bop,” LGBTQ+ student Mylena Ferman said.
Lil Nas X has caused quite the discussion with this video, but he was also able to provide a voice to other members of the community as a gay artist. Many feel ashamed of their sexuality, forced to conceal for many years, but with his imaginative storytelling, he has allowed others to feel pride in who they are and is a voice for the LGBTQ+ community.
