TIA: Hip-hop’s newest viral star, Lil Nas
X, has been all over the internet thanks to
his country trap hit, “Old Town Road.”
And while he’s no stranger to online fame,
he’s had quite a ride to the top.
TIA: Lil Nas X had dropped a number of other tracks online in the year leading up to “Old Town Road,"
including his EP ‘Nasarati’
in July 2018.
LIL NAS: I was living with my sister, and
she was ready for me to go, basically.
So it started off as this loner cowboy kind
of vibe.
TIA: He’d started rapping in June, a month
before the release of his EP, and many of
his early songs were very different from
the hit that helped him blow up.
TIA: He even posted on the Genius forums back
in the early days to promote cover of Lil Yachty's
track, “NBAYOUNGBOAT.”
NAS: At first, I thought, "I'm just going
to rap," but then later on down the line,
literally probably two, three songs before
Old Town Road, it's like, "I'm going to do
what I want to do.
I'm going to make the music I want to make,
and if people like it, then they like it.
If they don't, then they don't."
TIA: But making catchy songs wouldn’t be
enough to get on major platforms.
Lil Nas was also mastering the art of self-promotion.
Thanks to his sizeable Twitter following and
some clever memes.
TIA: “Old Town Road” originally dropped
in late 2018, and its unique country sound
and trap beat helped get it the attention
it needed to go viral.
NAS: A lot of my music before "Old Town Road,"
I was just trying to make music where I thought
this is what everybody wanted.
TIA: Lil Nas X had found the beat, which was
produced by YoungKio, on YouTube.
And the track features a sample from the Cleveland
rock band, Nine Inch Nails.
TIA: The song quickly blew up on TikTok, the
video sharing app responsible for a number
of other songs' popularity.
And “Old Town Road” was racking up millions
of views.
NAS: I was pushing it on my account for I
guess a few months until it finally picked
up on TikTok.
Then, I didn't have to do much after that
because it's been skyrocketing ever since
to this day.
TIA: And all those clicks paid off.
By the time “Old Town Road” dropped, his
antics helped get the song way more attention.
TIA: In March of 2019, Lil Nas X signed a
deal with Columbia Records, and by then, “Old
"Old Town Road” was all over the internet.
TIA: When it was first released, he had tagged
the song as “country” on platforms like
SoundCloud, which many noted as a clever way
to trick the algorithm and stand out in a
different arena.
TIA: While it may have been country trap,
whether or not it was considered a country
song was up for debate.
TIA: In late March 2019, Rolling Stone reported
that Billboard had removed “Old Town Road”
from its Hot Country Songs Chart, saying that
it quote:
NAS: Before it was even taken off the country
charts, I was just happy to be on Billboard
at all.
Even after they did take it off, I was like,
"Okay, at least I'm still on Billboard."
Then, I started to think about, I was like,
"Why?"
After listening to other songs that's actually
on that chart, it's like wait a minute,
something's not right, basically.
TIA: But on the track’s remix, there’s
a feature from Kentucky country star Billy Ray Cyrus,
who cosigned the song’s country
credibility on Twitter, saying quote:
TIA: With or without its country credit, by
April, “Old Town Road” was an unstoppable presence,
and  on April 8th, it leapt to #1 on the Hot 100.
NAS: Honestly, it makes me feel great that
I was able to put completely different worlds
together and make a song that so many people
like.
TIA: I’m Tia with Genius News bringing you
the meaning and the knowledge behind the music.
