Lil Nas X has explained why he didn’t reveal himself as the person behind the Nicki Minaj stan account NasMaraj before he hit it big.
“I didn’t want people to know I was gay tbh,” the rapper tweeted Tuesday after someone asked him why he “never claimed her when people asked if you were a barb” (a word for Minaj fans).
Lil Nas X’s response sparked someone to point out that “Being a barb don’t make you gay,” to which he replied: “it don’t but people will assume if you had an entire fan page dedicated to nicki u are gay. and the rap/music industry ain’t exactly built or accepting of gay men yet.”
The conversation was followed by Minaj herself, who tweeted at Lil Nas X on Wednesday: “It was a bit of a sting when you denied being a barb, but I understand. Congratulations on building up your confidence to speak your truth.”
The “Old Town Road” rapper publicly came out as gay in 2019.
Lil Nas X replied to Minaj: “the generous queen, i love u. and i’m sorry i did that in a time where u were already getting so much bandwagon hate. i felt so bad, hoping u wouldn’t see my denial. i was just so afraid of people finding out about me and losing everything before i even got a chance."