“Over a year ago we released the Jesus Shoes ,” MSCHF stated on their official website where the now sold out shoes still have a web page. This is due to Nike being affiliated with the infamous shoes through a swoosh seen on the sides, which occurred similarly with Jesus Shoes released one year prior. Regarding the Satan Shoes, Nike has recently taken steps to sue MSCHF, the company Lil Nas X partnered with in order to create the shoes. It is my hope that we can appreciate art regardless of one’s identity or our own in the future, and hold our reactions back until further investigation into an artist’s cause and purpose. The majority of the shoes are black with red highlights, containing drops of human blood and references to a Biblical verse which references the Devil by having Luke 10:18 printed on the side of the shoes and likewise setting the price for the shoe at $1,018 price. In addition to his recent song release, Lil Nas X created shoes inspired by “Montero,” titled “Satan Shoes”. We praise songs by the Rolling Stones, The Beatles, Elvis, Metallica, Grateful Dead, Van Halen and Johnny Cash about the devil however, when a gay man writes a similar song, he is criticized. The slant society has against this song is revealed through our hypocrisy. Lil Nas X’s Satanic references throughout “Montero” are symbols of him embracing his gay identity, which was taught as Satanic when he was growing up. “So I hope you are mad, stay mad, feel the same anger you teach us to have towards ourselves.” “ I spent my entire teenage years hating myself because of the sh*t y’all preached would happen to me because I was gay,” Lil Nas X tweeted in response to Governor Kristi Noem of South Dakota taking a stance against Lil Nas X. In reality, Lil Nas X struggled through his teenage years as a Christian, having anti-LGBTQIA+ ideas incorporated into his upbringing. Now, he is receiving more hate than ever for “Montero” due to its so-called “devil worshipping.” He has since had four multi-platinum songs and continues to prove himself. Lil Nas X was told after “Old Town Road” hit number one that he was a one-hit-wonder at 19. Although this may sound bad on paper, Lil Nas X is being criticized without acknowledgement of the barriers he has broken, which are symbolized in “Montero.” This song has lap dancing on the devil, pole dancing to hell and a sexual twist to biblical stories with “Satan Shoes” to match.
“Montero” just hit number one in the world on April 5 for Billboard, but this song is different from his two other number-one-hits since “Old Town Road” in 2019. Since his new song release, “Montero,” Lil Nas X has recieved an overwhelming and unjust amount of backlash due to him being one of few gay rappers.