Ladies, gentlemen, nonbinaries, and bottoms: Lil Nas X at the Bill Graham

“Old Town Road” blew up during my last semester of high school. As the longest-running No. 1 in Billboard chart history it may as well have been the song my class walked to during my graduation. It was everywhere, inescapable.

Admittedly, at the time I was indifferent towards it. It was another pop song, an internet meme unworthy of the attention of my pretentious, underground, guitar-music-loving self (*sigh* we all grow out of it eventually). However, after a few years (and a pandemic) passed, the brilliant irony of Lil Nas X and “Old Town Road’s” success in my small, rural, conservative hometown, became deliciously apparent. 

Yassified yeehaw was in. Bimbos and drag queens began to wear the same attire as the redneck cowboys who called me slurs in high school. Conversations about the Black origins of country music were re-ignited and the queer cowboy became a cultural icon. Assless chaps, fringe leather jackets, and Pit Vipers became queer symbols, while cowboy hats and boots were decked out in sequins, feathers, lights, and glitter. 

Nowhere was the cultural impact of Montero more apparent than at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium on Sunday night where Lil Nas X performed the final show of his Long Live Montero Tour. Despite his controversial status in many (i.e. red) parts of the country, it’s safe to say Lil Nas X is a crowd pleaser in the Bay Area, evident by the diversity of the crowd. San Francisco gay men were joined by MILFs celebrating ‘girls night out’ and the omnipresent 20-somethings who flock to any sort of trendy event. The show was sold-out and packed as over 8,000 fans crammed into the venue to catch a glimpse of the Black, gay messiah.

 While the fits of the crowd were not and should not be understated, Lil Nas X did not allow himself to be overshadowed. During the 70-minute concert, the pop star had five costume changes, all of which were custom designed by Coach. One of my favorite moments (and fits) of the night was following “MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name)” when Nas began to don a pair of giant mechanical butterfly wings that gently flapped with his movements. Part fairy, part angel, and certainly heaven sent, Lil Nas X took the moment to explain how he got lost walking around the city before the show: 

“I was walking around for two hours, and look, I accidentally walked all the way to the venue, I didn’t know where the fuck the venue was today and I don’t know, I just feel like that’s a magical moment, like, isn’t that cool? To end the story, I just want to say, enjoy who you are right now before your next moment or your next moment in life.”

For concertgoers, Lil Nas X’s magical day gave way to a magical night; Nas’ show was an meticulously choreographed amalgamation of pop culture and Black queer innovation. The show took the form of a three-act play and playbill-esque programs were handed out at the beginning of the concert. The front of the stage was covered in golden statues, figureheads of butterflies, celestial beings, and, of course, Lil Nas X’s face as the centerpiece.

Each act opened with a costume change and wisdom from ‘The Wizard of Naz,’ a ballroom mother figure narrating Lil Nas X’s journey. The first page of the program includes a hand-written note from the star, and after greeting the audience with “Hello ladies & gentlemen & nonbinaries and bottoms,” Nas goes on to explain “you will see me in a play about me, starring me, with music by me.” 

While the show did match Nas’ description, it’s safe to say the star was being facetiously self-aggrandizing as he gave ample credit to the many people crucial to the tour’s success. The final pages of the playbill detail all of the people responsible for the show’s production, something I’ve never seen done before by an artist of Lil Nas X’s standing. 

One of the highlights of the night for me was the backup dancers, and Nas went to extra lengths to give them the attention they deserved. In the show’s second act, Nas and his dancers paid homage to Queen Bey and ballroom culture with a voguing dance break to “Pure/Honey” off Beyonce’s 2022 club epic Renaissance. The small but elite dance squad had pictures and bios in the program, and, later in the night, Nas left the stage in order for his dancers to show off their skills, each of them choosing a clip of a song to dance to.

But really it was a night full of dancing for everyone. While the crowd had no problem hoeing down in the pit, Nas invited several audience members—including one in a full fursuit—on-stage to twerk to his unreleased song “Down Souf Hoes.” With the abundance of poppers, girls, gays, and theys in the building, the party could’ve gone on all night, but unfortunately all good things must come to an end. After playing his hits “Scoop” and “Industry Baby” Nas left the stage, returning briefly for a one song encore of “STAR WALKIN’,” the League of Legends Worlds Anthem 

It was a fitting reminder that you can take the meme lord off the internet but you can’t take the internet out of the meme lord. Despite the song’s silly origin, it was in many ways a fitting conclusion to Lil Nas X’s performance. From Twitter shitposter to internet sensation to global pop star, Lil Nas X has already proven that he’s headed for the stars and ready to go far. He sure is star walkin’.

Article by Lily Ramus