From the first time I heard it, Industry Baby hit like a stadium anthem.
The horns. They lyrics. The braggadocio.
I ain't lost since I began, yeah
Funny how you said it was the end, yeah
Then I went and did it again, yeah
It seems poised to become as ubiquitous as All I Do Is Win. And yet, I also wondered if it would blare from stadium speakers, or if Lil Nas X was too "controversial."
I say "controversial" with all of the eyeroll it deserves. Most of the "controversy" is that Lil Nas X is gay. He came out following the global success of Old Town Road, and has been living unapologetically ever since. His two most recent videos have made a splash - in Montero (Call Me By Your Name) he grinds on Satan before snatching his crown; the Industry Baby video sees him going to prison for Montero and features a naked dance scene in the prison shower. Pitting that against the often hypermasculine backdrop of men's sports, and it wouldn't surprise me if teams steered clear. In a vacuum, it's easy to see an underdog jumping around singing, "You was never really rootin for me anyway" after a big upset.
We do know it's at least made its way into one stadium. At last Sunday's National Battle of the Bands in Houston, Southern University's Human Jukebox cranked it. It's easy to see why - in addition to the above reasons it fits in a stadium, its synthesized horns translate well to their analog counterparts. Put simply, it slaps.
And for anyone who would want to see it excluded because they feel some kinda way about Lil Nas X? You was never really rootin for him anyway.
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