Lil Nas Finally “Births” Debut Album Montero

Lil Nas X took the world by storm in 2019 with his chart-topping hit “Old Town Road”. The Georgia bred musician has since been gearing up to release his debut album, Montero. However, the road to making Montero was of course not without bumps and controversy along the way. Leading up to the release of Montero, Lil Nas X publicly came out as gay via the song “c7osure” from his EP entitled 7.

Following this announcement, the rapper encountered heavy backlash from hip-hop peers and some of the public. His controversial music video to “Montero (Call Me By Your Name)” gained further hostility from Christians and conservatives. Either way, these events plus recent antics ensured people were talking about the album before its release.

Call Lil Nas By His Name

As part of the promotional rollout for his new Montero album, Lil Nas X pretended to be pregnant with his debut studio LP. The Georgia-bred performer birthed the project today (September 17). Montero dropped at midnight with guest features by Jack Harlow, Doja Cat, Elton John, Megan Thee Stallion, and Miley Cyrus. The 15-track album was executive produced by frequent collaborator, Take A Daytrip. “Music saved my entire life,” the artist said. And I truly get it now. It gave me an outlet to just have more of a purpose, have something that I want to dedicate myself to, have something I love, have something that I’m not doing for somebody else,” The rapper told Apple Music 1’s, Zane Lowe.

In addition, Lil Nas X dropped a music video for the track “That’s What I Want.” The STILLZ-directed visuals, which includes a cameo from Billy Porter, quickly began trending on YouTube.

Visualizers for several Montero tracks were also published on Lil Nas X’s YouTube channel in support of the Gilead COMPASS Initiative. The organization works to address the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the southern part of the United States. Gilead is matching all donations up to $25,000 per charity.