Lil Nas X set the BET stage ablaze Sunday night with a performance of his hit song, “Montero (Call Me By Your Name)” that was sealed with a kiss. The 22-year-old took the stage with a performance that paid tribute to Michael Jackson’s hit song “Remember the Time,” marking a performance that quickly became one of the biggest talking points of the night.
After donning a stunning ancient Egypt-inspired look by designer Andrea Grossi to strut the red carpet, the musician emerged onto the fiery stage from underneath a black coat, only to reveal an equally as stunning all-gold Pharaoh costume. With an Ancient Egyptian backdrop, the singer belted out his hit song while showing off some impressive dance moves before sharing a steamy kiss with one of his male dancers. The kiss drew audible cheers from the crowd and a standing ovation from Pose star Mj Rodriguez and several others in the A-list crowd.
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The performance drew plenty of reactions online, with one viewer tweeting, “On the last day of [Pride] 2021 [Lil Nas X] got on the [BET Awards] stage and kissed another guy. If you grew up Black and gay, you know how major this is. I live for this kid.” Another fan of the performance wrote that the singer “really understood the assignment period,” with Diddy sharing, “Lil Nas X did that!! Be fearless!!!” Not everyone was as pleased, however. After one viewer criticized that steamy on-stage kiss, writing, “DON’T USE AFRICAN CULTURE FOR S—S LIKE THIS!!!! RESPECT OUR ANCESTORS,” the rapper was quick to hit back. In his own tweet, Lil Nas X wrote, “Y’all really like to pretend homosexuality didn’t exist in African culture.”
The performance came just a month after Lil Nas X made waves with another performance, though for far different reasons. Again signing a rendition of “Montero (Call Me By Your Name)” as the musical guest for Saturday Night Live‘s Season 46 finale in May, the musician had a notable wardrobe malfunction when his leather pants split as he did a pole dancing routine. The musician was a pro, though, and finished the performance without breaking a sweat.
That wardrobe malfunction sparked plenty of chatter on social media, and Lil Nas X later revealed that his first thought was, “‘Oh God… Just please don’t be on TV already.’” He joked that “the worst part” of the incident came towards the end of the routine. Lil Nas X joked, “at the end of the performance, the dancers are supposed to touch me and tug on me and whatever, and they were tugging on the pants! I was like, ‘Please, God. No!’”
