- It was so hard for me to not like say
“Billy Ray Cyrus is coming,
”Billy Ray Cyrus is --”
Like I wanted to say like so bad,
just having to hold it in.
But his is like, when I heard his verse
for the first time, it was just like,
I knew he was gonna kill it but it was like,
Okay!
(laughing)
Can't watch me on my own song.
(laughing)
- You know a lot has changed over the last year,
a year ago you put out the 'Naserati' EP.
You know fast forward, here we are
with the hottest song in the country,
what has changed from then to now?
- First you know, with 'Naserati' I was tryin' to
like a lot of times I was tryin' to make the song like
this is what people's gonna wanna hear.
Ya know?
Especially like with my newer music
it's just whatever I feel like makin' at the moment
and you know, I don't care who likes it or who don't.
I mean, I want you to like it but if you don't
oh well basically.
- I saw that you said you're gonna put out a rock song?
Is that the goal?
- Yeah it's like an alternative rock poppish type of song.
A lot of people don't realize that when I release my album,
I'm not gonna ever have one sound
and it's not that I'm confused about
what I'm trying to be it's that I'm not trying
to have one sound.
I don't want people like, “Okay,
“oh another Lil' Nas X song,” basically.
- You have a really strong presence on Twitter, you know,
you have a prolific profile.
Talk about your relationship with that platform.
- Even when I was younger like maybe 11, 12ish
when I start to like get into the internet
and I would hop from this place to this place.
Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and all that
and try to build myself up,
but with Twitter, it was like where I kind of mastered,
but not mastered, but learned the ways
of how to go viral on the internet basically
and you know I use that to my advantage.
- You love to troll here and there.
I saw that you tweet
you said you can't troll the troll.
Why is that important to get that message out?
- Because it's just like a lot of people
seein' like my rise and they hatin' it
so it's like they're lookin' for some way
to get me to bite back or somethin'.
- Right.
- So it's like, I used to do this, you can't do this to me.
You know, it's not gonna work.
You just gonna be building my engagements basically.
- Let's talk about the record itself, man.
"Old Town Road" number one song for four weeks on Billboard.
How does that feel?
- It feels amazing, there's no other words.
- How did you feel when they took it off the country charts?
- I was still happy to just be on the charts.
- Just happy to be here?
- I was disappointed but it's not like, “Okay,
“oh, it's the end of everything,” I'm still on the charts.
- You still here.
- I won.
- It's already a victory.
But when Billboard issued that statement
talkin' about missin' elements,
did you think it was missin' any elements?
- No, I don't know the reason.
I don't know “the reason.”
- It's a conspiracy (laughing).
- It definitely, that definitely wasn't it.
'Cause there's already songs on the country charts
with trap elements so.
- Right, who's idea was it to get Billy Ray Cyrus
was that always your intention?
- It was mine.
Yeah literally, it's still on my Twitter account.
I tweet, I was like, “Twitter, please help me
“get Billy Ray on this.”
- But why Billy Ray Cyrus?
- He's the perfect fit.
People know him for his music especially older generations
and younger generations knowin' him from the show,
and "Old Town Road" is touching all these different people.
So it's like who else but this country legend
to hop on this country drive song,
who's loved and known by everybody.
- Right, how was it like performing with him
'cause we saw you and Diplo
together for the first time performing it.
What was that experience like?
- It was one thing 'cause it was my first ever performance.
- Wow!
- And it was like, I'm doin' it with Diplo
and Billy Ray Cyrus.
And the crowd was like insane.
I could barely hear myself.
- What's it feel like to have the crowd
recite a song, your first song which is a hit?
What does that feel like?
- It feels amazing!
It's like not even having to say,
if I mess up, they still going.
- They got your back.
What's also amazing is that we're waiting for this video.
We saw that you just recently wrapped it up in the can.
What can we expect from that?
- The video is the video of the year.
- The video of the year?
- And I'm not gassing myself.
I would never do that.
I mean the video has an amazing story line.
It also fits into what actually happened with the situation.
Maybe more subliminal but the special guests, the acting,
the comedy in it, it's an amazing video.
When it comes all together, everybody's gonna love it.
- When's it gonna be released?
- It is gonna be released within a month.
(laughing)
- Nothing specific?
- Yeah, nothing specific.
- Before it drops, can you give us a little snippet
or something, a tidbit that's gonna surprise us
when it drops?
- Back to the Future 3.
- Oh wow, you got Michael J. Fox?
Or a DeLorean?
- That's all I'm sayin'.
(laughing)