Lil Nas X is having an incredible year following the reception of his debut studio album, “Montero.”
He gave an interview to GQ after being named their “Musician of the Year” and graced the front cover of their “Man of the Year” issue. He covered an array of subjects in the wide-ranging interview, one of which was of course his hugely popular. “Montero” album.
GQ asked Lil Nas about his success rate of reaching out for features. How often was he turned down? According to the controversial artist, he got the green light from nearly all the collaborators he wanted on the project.
However, there were two exceptions, Drake and Nicki Minaj, who apparently didn’t want to be involved.
“I don’t usually ask for features like that. But for every feature I did ask for on this album, like, every single one of them worked…besides Drake and Nicki [Minaj],” he told GQ.
Although he had specific songs in mind for the collaborations, he didn’t actually let Drake or Nicki know. “I didn’t ask them directly. I wanted Nicki on ‘Industry Baby,’ and I wanted Drake on ‘Dolla Sign Slime,’ with Megan [Thee Stallion],” he added. “Industry Baby” of course was given to Harlow. “Yeah, but you know, I feel like things always work out. Jack Harlow ended up being, like, the best option. I’m not sure how comfortable Nicki would have felt with that video or whatnot.”
Lil Nas X and Jack Harlowe’s “Industry Baby” scored the pair a number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart when it was released in July.
His Fear Of Being Exposed
Elsewhere in the interview, the Atlanta native revealed that his denial of running a Nicki Minaj fan club was, “probably the last lie I’ve told publicly.” He shared his fear when people began to discover the truth.
“It was so much anxiety. Like, I literally felt like, Oh, my God, this is like a setup. And I’m going to die soon. It was much darker in my head than people were probably seeing. And it was also like, Damn, I’ve been working hard, like not sleeping, and I just made it to the music industry, and this is going to ruin everything for me.”
His main concern was being outed as a gay man rather than for running a celebrity fan account. He said it was both but “Mainly being gay. That was the main thing I was most afraid of.”
Listen to Lil Nas X & Jack Harlow’s “Industry Baby” Below