Lil Nas X has been the earworm of 2019. The 20 year old rapper went from obscurity to the center of the public eye with his breakout song: The kitschy, infectious, and undeniably unique track “Old Town Road.” With its massive streaming and radio success, it is likely that you are already aware of the track. “Old Town Road,” first released in 2018, is a song that mashes up hip hop and country in a way that is funny, extremely catchy, and somehow wholly authentic to both genres. As the song gained circulation on the popular mobile video app TikTok, it began to slowly leak out of the confines of dancing preteens and into the consciousness of the greater public. By the spring of 2019, Lil Nas X and “Old Town Road” were everywhere. On the radio, on TV, and in the playlists of frat parties across the country.

The track gained even more attention after Billboard removed Lil Nas X from the Hot Country 100 chart in March 2019. In a statement to Rolling Stone, Billboard stated,“While ‘Old Town Road’ incorporates references to country and cowboy imagery, it does not embrace enough elements of today's country music to chart in its current version.” This received backlash from the public for several reasons. Some asserted that Billboard was exhibiting racial bias based upon them not allowing a black artist with a successful song within the country community because he does not fit the “country” aesthetic. Others were angry that Billboard insinuated that “Old Town Road” was not “country enough” for the chart because it had a hip hop influence, yet many of today’s white country artists have blatantly ripped off black R&B and rap styles yet have received no flack for it. Billboard upheld its position until country icon Billy Ray Cyrus gave his cosign on the track by lending his voice to feature on the remix.

Since the Billboard controversy, Lil Nas X has continued to ride the “Old Town Road” wave. He released a music video for the remix in May and has performed on a myriad of awards shows and events. Despite the fun of “Old Town Road,” listeners have been wondering: Will this be Lil Nas X’s only popular track? Does Lil Nas X have any longevity in music, or is he simply just a one hit wonder? To begin to answer this question, Lil Nas X has released a new body of work entitled his first commercial EP 7.

Beginning with the Billy Ray Cyrus remix of “Old Town Road” and ending with the original version, 7 (which actually contains eight songs overall) showcases six brand new Lil Nas X songs. Over the course of these six songs, Lil Nas X experiments with tracks that pay homage to genres other than country and hip hop. Songs like “F9mily (You and Me)” and “Bring U Down” are heavily influenced by the sounds of pop and rock, both utilizing smooth guitar licks, rhythmic bass, and catchy lyrics that, like “Old Town Road” itself, one does not expect to like but quickly grows on them. “Kick It” and “C7osure (You Like)” have a more contemporary rap/R&B sound. Lil Nas X employs some of the sing-rap style popularized by the likes of Drake in the early 2010s on both tracks. He even hits some higher notes on “C7osure (You Like)” that are a nice surprise for the listener. Lil Nas X does not confine himself musically on this project. He allows himself to explore the different conventions of music, dipping his toes into several genres and putting his own spin on each.

Even tracks like “Panini” and “Rodeo” manage to set themselves apart from the rest of trap bangers out currently. “Panini” clearly draws on the musical style of artists like Travis Scott with the quick flow, lower vocal register, and clean, straightforward production style. Yet Lil Nas X’s lyrics are totally his own. The song’s motif of “Hey Panini, don’t you be a meanie” is both funny and hilarious, which seems to be indicative part of Lil Nas X’s brand. Yet despite how silly the lyrics may seem, it gets stuck in your head and is not long before you are singing along without reservation.

“Rodeo” had the potential to be the strongest track on 7. “Rodeo” combines a surf rock inspired guitar riff with trap production and tops it off with a vocal style that plays up his Southern accent. “Rodeo” is the closet track stylistically to “Old Town Road,” being what I would consider to be the only other country/rap mashup on the project. The track does lose appeal due to the unexpected Cardi B feature in the last third of the track. Cardi B’s verse is short and does not add to the ambience of the track. Her vocals are not mixed in the same way Lil Nas X’s are, making her stint on the track feel wholly out of place. Her addition on the song feels more like a corporate move to keep the traction on Lil Nas X alive more so than a genuine collaborative effort. Without Cardi B’s feature, “Rodeo” would have undoubtedly been my favorite track on 7.

Thematically, 7 does not have much of a locus. Each track deals with different combiniations of sex, relationships, newfound success, and the most recent changes to his lifestyle. He references the Billboard situation on some tracks as well. Other than that, there is not much to gleam lyrically from this EP and the subject matter is fairly generic.

Overall, Lil Nas X’s debut commercial EP 7 is a very intriguing project. There are some tracks that are super fun, catchy, and sonically interesting to listen to and others that fall flat. For the tracks that hold up, though, they are so addictive. I believe that Lil Nas X has a little more than fifteen seconds in the spotlight. He is not yesterday’s news just yet.

Favorite Tracks:

Panini

Kick It

Bring U Down

Rating: 6.5

Listen to 7 here:

7 EP, an album by Lil Nas X on Spotify

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