Lil Nas X released the music video for his song Montero last week, which featured extremely provocative imagery, including the rapper pole dancing into the depths of hell and giving Satan a lap dance. While some are celebrating the music video as a black queer man embracing the discrimination he faces, others are deriding it as a work of Satanism.
The Argument Against
I wonder if gays of color are happy being represented by a self-confessed Satanist like #LilNasX?— Lavern Spicer (@Lavern Spicer) 1617113196.0
Essentially, Christian groups are deriding the music video, and the accompanying "Satan shoes" Lil Nas released alongside the video as anti-Christian, and pro-Satanism.
We Christians are the Light of the World through Christ Jesus and can't be silent. Stand with me against these… https://t.co/WP0ANQ4y86— Pastor Mark Burns (@Pastor Mark Burns) 1617111657.0
The Argument For
my bad bro @god— nope 🏹 (@nope 🏹) 1617066817.0
Those that side with Lil Nas X say that the music video is a celebration of his queer identity. Essentially, that the rapper is using the rhetoric some Christians use against LGBTQ people and wearing it as a badge of honor. Saying no matter what they do to him, if he goes to hell for being himself, he will still always be himself.
“Call Me By Your Name” is one of the best new songs I’ve heard in 2021 and I’m not arguing about it🤷🏾♀️— Tiera (@Tiera) 1617048824.0
There are also those who point out that the straight white men have been using Satanist rhetoric for artistic value in genres like heavy metal for years, with nowhere near this level of backlash, making some suspect that the massive amount of protest over this song is resulting from Lil Nas X's status as a gay black man.
Wherever you stand on the music video itself, that song is still catchy.
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