Lil Nas says BET snub is about a larger problem: LGBTQ acceptance

By Claretta Bellamy, NBC News

The rapper’s being snubbed from the BET Awards nominations is an example of “what the struggle continues to be” for Black queer artists, one expert said.

Lil Nas X is not happy with BET.

The rapper released a teaser video on Twitter on Tuesday for his new song “Late to Da Party” featuring YB, in which he sings “F— BET.” 

The line comes after Lil Nas X expressed his disappointment for being shut out of nominations for the BET Awards last week. He also pointed out the ongoing struggle of Black queer artists over visibility and acceptance, particularly among Black audiences.

In a series of tweets, Lil Nas X called out the network for the snub despite the success of his album “Montero,” which reached No. 2 on Billboard’s 200 albums chart in 2021.

“thank you bet awards,” he said in a since-deleted tweet. “An outstanding zero nominations again. black excellence.”

In another tweet, Lil Nas X addressed online critics suggesting he’s overreacting for not receiving a nomination. “this not over no bet award this is about the bigger problem of homophobia in the black community, y’all can sit and pretend all u want but imma risk it all for us,” he tweeted…

Following Lil Nas X’s released teaser video, BET said in a statement Wednesday that the nominees were chosen by BET’s Voting Academy  — a group of 500 professionals in the entertainment industry — and that “no one from BET serves as a member of the Voting Academy.”

Learn why Lil Nas X and others see this issue in the Black community.

Homophobia persists despite Frank Ocean drawing attention to it in 2013 and more recently, Billy Porter called out Vogue for something similar.

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