It comes just two weeks after Lil Nas said the snub was a reflection of “homophobia in the black community.”
Last year, Lil Nas X made history when he kissed his male backup dancer during his performance at the BET Awards, an annual ceremony that celebrates Black people in the entertainment industry.
Bennett Raglin / Getty Images for BET
Shortly after the show, the openly gay star admitted that he was “trembling” before the kiss and that he struggled to mentally prepare himself because he knew it was unlike anything that’d happened at the awards show before.
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“It took me a lot of time to mentally prepare for this performance. while on stage i was trembling knowing that i was performing something like that in front of my straight peers,” he tweeted at the time. “Even during the performance i was having a hard time calming my nerves.”
it took me a lot of time to mentally prepare for this performance. while on stage i was trembling knowing that i was performing something like that in front of my straight peers. even during the performance i was having a hard time calming my nerves. thank you guys for the love.
The kiss ended up sparking anti-gay backlash, but Lil Nas still went on to enjoy a bumper year in the music industry.
He released his critically acclaimed album Montero in September, three months after his BET appearance, which spawned two No. 1 singles: “Montero (Call Me By Your Name)” and “Industry Baby,” which ended up being the second longest running number one song on the Billboard rap charts.
His success saw him dominate 2022’s awards circuit and he was nominated for five Grammys, two Brits, and five Billboard Music Awards, where he took home the accolade for Top Rap Song.
Emma Mcintyre / Getty Images for The Recording Academy
So Lil Nas was understandably surprised when Montero was snubbed by the BET Awards this year, with the star receiving no nominations at all.
“Thank you bet awards,” Lil Nas tweeted when this year’s nominees were first announced. “An outstanding zero nominations again. black excellence!”
When someone replied to ask why he deserved to be nominated, the rapper dryly stated: “idk maybe 3 of the biggest songs of last year & a critically acclaimed album. i feel like that should’ve helped me a bit.”
Lil Nas later deleted his tweets, but a week later he was back on social media to double down on his stance, sharing a video of himself lip-synching to a preview of his single “Late To Da Party,” which starts with the star repeating: “Fuck BET.”
And the full song, as well as its accompanying music video, was released on Friday — just two days before this year’s BET ceremony.
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Promoting its imminent release on Instagram on Thursday, Lil Nas shared a photo of the single artwork, which showed a BET award being urinated on in the toilet.
Lil Nas won two BET Hip Hop Awards in 2019 for his remix of “Old Town Road” featuring Billy Ray Cyrus.
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And the rapper seemingly confirmed that the concept for the artwork was a “homage” to Kanye West — who famously posted a video of himself urinating on a Grammy in 2020 — when he retweeted a fan who pointed out the similarity.
As well as the single, the music video for “Late To Da Party” was well-received by fans as Lil Nas showed off his sense of humor by using terrible CGI and photoshop throughout.
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In fact, the video opens with Lil Nas chanting “Fuck BET” as he sits at his computer and edits together the artwork of the toilet on Photoshop.
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And the final scene of the music video sees Lil Nas performing in front of a crowd seemingly at the BET Awards. As he chants: “Fuck BET” he shows off stacks of money before unapologetically draping himself in a rainbow Pride flag.
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Lil Nas previously argued that BET snubbing him despite his undeniable success in the industry was evidence of “homophobia in the black community,” as he tweeted: “doesn’t even have to be nominated. i just feel like black gay ppl have to fight to be seen in this world and even when we make it to the top mfs try to pretend we are invisible.”
“This not over no bet award, this is about the bigger problem of homophobia in the black community, y’all can sit and pretend all u want but imma risk it all for us,” he added.
this not over no bet award this is about the bigger problem of homophobia in the black community, y’all can sit and pretend all u want but imma risk it all for us.
And Lil Nas used the fact that he had won two Grammys in 2020 as evidence that he is being purposefully ignored by BET. “How can i get acknowledged by the most acclaimed award show in the world and then not even just 1 nomination from my own people?” he asked. “Is that not crazy? am i really tripping.”
this is my point exactly how can i get acknowledged by the most acclaimed award show in the world and then not even just 1 nomination from my own people? is that not crazy? am i really tripping https://t.co/aE5cCRVsFm
When a follower argued that other other Black LGBTQ+ artists had been nominated, including Tyler, the Creator and Frank Ocean, Lil Nas responded by claiming that “queer men are more respected when they do less feminine things.”
love frank and tyler to death but can we admit queer men are more respected when they do less feminine things or am i making that up? https://t.co/MLqkGYKWSI
This appeared to be a direct reference to his same-sex kiss last year, as well as his history of indulging in more “feminine things” such as wearing dresses on the red carpet, and having male pole dancers in his performances.
A spokesperson for BET previously defended Lil Nas X not being nominated this year by saying that it was down to their 500-strong Voting Academy.
“We love Lil Nas X. He was nominated for a Best New Artist BET Award in 2020, and we proudly showcased his extraordinary talent and creativity on the show twice: he performed ‘Old Town Road’ with Billy Ray Cyrus at BET Awards 2019 and his BET Awards 2021 performance was a highlight of our show. No one cheered louder that night than BET,” they said.
Bennett Raglin / Getty Images for BET
“Unfortunately, this year, he was not nominated by BET’s Voting Academy, which is comprised of an esteemed group of nearly 500 entertainment professionals in the fields of music, television, film, digital marketing, sports journalism, public relations, influencers, and creative arts. No one from BET serves as a member of the Voting Academy,” the statement continued.
“At BET, we are passionate advocates for the wonderful diversity that exists within our community,” they concluded. “We are committed to using all of our platforms to provide visibility and inclusion for all of the many intersections of the Black community.”
