Lil Nas X Wins His First Country Music Award For ‘Old Town Road’
If there’s still any lingering questions as to whether Lil Nas X’s Diamond-certified chart-topper, “Old Town Road,” is country enough, well now you have your answer.
The Atlanta country trapster is now an official winner of a Country Music Award. The 53rd annual award ceremony took place in Nashville Wednesday night (Nov. 13) where he won his accolade in the genre.
Lil Nas and Billy Ray Cyrus took home the “Musical Event Of The Year” trophy for the track’s genre-bending remix. The win is Cyrus’ second CMA award; she previously won “Single Of The Year” in 1992 for his country classic “Achy Breaky Heart.” The duo beat out some of the biggest names in country music for the distinguished honor, including country darling Maren Morris and the critically acclaimed Garth Brooks.
“I’m so happy this song was accepted because it is the bridge of the two [different] genres put together. I’m just happy it’s gotten respect from both communities,” the 20-year-old said at a post-show conference following his latest historical win.
Previously, Billboard controversially booted the song off of their country charts earlier this year because it was deemed not country enough, sparking widespread criticism. In spite of the minor setback, the single eventually elevated to the biggest song of 2019 after Cyrus hopped on the track. The remix catapulted to the top of the charts where it rode the No. 1 spot for a record 17 straight weeks as the largest chart run in music history.
With this distinction, the “Panini” rapper is not only one of the few Black artists to ever win a Country Music Award, but he is also the first openly queer Black artist to win an accolade from the association. Thus, the award arrives as the cap on what has been a massively successful year for the artist, who was recently honored by Time magazine in their inaugural Next 100 special issue.
BET tips its hat to Lil Nas X!
