On March 26, musician Montero Lamar Hill (known by his stage name Lil Nas X) released a new song titled “MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name).” He became a mainstream star after his first hit song, “Old Town Road.” This new song topped the US Billboard 100 at its release and is currently at number two at time of writing. The song has caused a stir worldwide due to the music video and associated product that Lil Nas X advertised on his social media: 666 modified pairs of Nike Air Max 97 shoes dubbed the “Satan Shoes.”
The music video reimagines the artist around various biblical scenes and Christian imagery in a risque fashion. Lil Nas X, who is openly gay, uses the music video to criticize how he perceives Christianity rejects gay people, preemptively dooming them to Hell. In a recent interview with Time Magazine, the singer states that he “grew up in a pretty religious kind of home—and for me, it was fear-based very much.” (The Torch published an article addressing these conceptions of the Catholic Church.) Importantly, it’s not true that gay people are doomed to Hell, nor does the Catholic Church reject anyone; rather, the Church is always open to all people, since everyone can follow Jesus and His Commandments regardless of sexual orientation. While Lil Nas X’s unspoken message is a bold one, it’s true that the Catholic Church and Christianity as a whole are misunderstood on this concept and that many feel rejected by the Church.
The shoes that the rapper released to promote the music video were made in collaboration with MSCHF (pronounced “mischief”), a viral art collective. The shoes were decorated with a bronze pentagram, an inverted cross, and one drop of human blood from the MSCHF creative team in each shoe’s air bubble sole. The shoes were $1,018 each pair, which is a reference to Luke 10:18: “Jesus said to them, ‘I saw Satan fall from Heaven like lightning.” The shoes sold out in the first few minutes of release, since there were only 666 pairs.
Nike has distanced themselves from the product, saying, “We do not have a relationship with Lil Nas or MSCHF…. Nike did not design or release these shoes and we do not endorse them.” Nike successfully halted distribution of the shoes as they sued MSCHF for trademark infringement, false destination of origin, trademark dilution, and unfair competition.
It seems probable that Lil Nas X’s criticism of Christianity is his most prominent message, and any romanticization of satanic worship is meant to further that point. While alleged satanic worship in popular culture by artists and entertainers as a form of symbolic expression is not uncommon in America –– such as the musical genre of black metal –– actual satanic worship is historically very uncommon and is mostly a modern phenomenon. While most present in America, satanist worship has spread through social and cultural avenues like the internet to many European countries, typically ones with a high Roman Catholic presence, such as Poland and Lithuania, as well as other former Soviet countries following the fall of the Soviet Union. Satanic worship is either a belief in Satan as a deity or an atheistic summation of ideological beliefs inspired by Satan’s questioning of God’s authority. While there is a Church of Satan in the latter type, there are no clear organized groups venerating Satan in the public eye.
While it may seem like a phase, Lil Nas X’s shrewd marketing was another successful example of utilizing Satan’s image for profit and notoriety. It brings misconceptions about the beliefs and values of the Catholic Church and Christianity into the spotlight, but if the Church can use these moments to emphasize how all are welcome to follow the Catholic Church and everyone is loved by God, it may improve the Church’s relationship to American society and the West.
Grant is a senior studying Information Systems at the Carroll School of Management. He keeps busy by studying and writing for The Torch.
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