Following days of anticipation, Lil Nas X has released the official video for his latest track “SUN GOES DOWN.”
The 22-year-old rapper announced the drop on social media last week, and went on to share a few details on what the visual would deliver. Co-directed by Nas and Psycho Films, the uplifting video finds the “Old Town Road” artist traveling back in time to 2017, where he can provide some much-needed comfort to his younger self. The cinematic visual follows Nas through his high school hallways, at his former Taco Bell job, and through an emotional prom night. It also includes a cameo by his father, R. L. Stafford, and real-life Taco Bell employee Andrew German, who is a recipient of the fast-food chain’s $25,000 Live Más Scholarship.
Nas spoke about his concept for the video in a recent interview with Rolling Stone, explaining the ways that it differed from his previous releases.
“My visual aesthetic is always changing. But a reoccurring theme in my work would always be Surrealism, or Futurism. I really love to mix reality with imagination—I guess that’s my ‘thing,’” he said. “But for [the music video for] ‘SUN GOES DOWN,’ I kept that kind of feeling to a minimum, because I wanted it to feel very real. But you still have me in a meditative state, where I go to this purple world where it’s like my future and past all existing in one place. I fly through that and go to my past me, and I’m trying to uplift him.
You can watch the song’s video via YouTube above and stream the single now on all major platforms.
Nas is expected to perform “SUN GOES DOWN” and his hit track “MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name)” during his Saturday Night Live performance this weekend. Both tracks will appear on the rapper’s much-anticipated debut album, which is set to arrive this summer.
