Lil Nas X Fires Back At Criticism Over Him Kissing Male Dancer at BET Awards

Lil Nas X is defending his BET Awards performance.

On Sunday, June 27, the 22-year-old singer set the stage ablaze at the ceremony, where he sang his hit song, Montero (Call Me By Your Name). While his performance received instant buzz due to the homage paid to Michael Jackson’s iconic song, Remember The Time, it also received praise and notable attention due to the steamy kiss he shared with one of his male dancers.

The kiss drew audible cheers and a massive amount of applause from the audience and even earned the rapper a standing ovation—but, when one social media user criticized the Old Town Road musician for his production, Lil Nas X immediately fired back.

In response to a critic who tweeted at him, “DON’T USE AFRICAN CULTURE FOR S–TS LIKE THIS!!!! RESPECT OUR ANCESTORS,” the rapper wrote, “Y’all really like to pretend homosexuality didn’t exist in African culture.”

For his on-stage attire, the rapper dressed up as a pharaoh and donned gold matching knee-high boots.

While the performance drew some criticism, like those who all of a sudden expect him to use his platform to “educate kids about HIV”, the Rodeo rapper also received an overwhelming amount of adoration and support from his fans on social media.

He even got a sweet shout-out from Diddy on Twitter. “Lil Nas X did that!!!” the 51-year-old rapper wrote. “Be fearless!!!” A fan of the Montero musician echoed that same sentiment by tweeting, “LIL NAS X. LEGEND, ICON, HE IS THE MOMENT.” Another sang his praises by writing, “Ok, I love this man for this and ending Pride month out with a bang.”