Lil Nas X has been honoured with the Suicide Prevention Advocate of the Year Award by The Trevor Project.
Lil Nas X
The ‘Montero (Call Me By Your Name)’ hitmaker has received the inaugural award from the charity, which is dedicated to suicide prevention and crisis intervention for people in the LGBTQ community.
The Trevor Project said they bestowed the award upon Nas for his “openness about struggling with his sexuality”, as he has previously spoken about his battle with mental health in the past.
They also cited “his continued advocacy around mental health issues, and his unapologetic celebration of his queer identity”.
And in an interview, the Trevor Project’s CEO and executive director Amit Paley said the awareness the ‘Old Town Road’ artist has brought to suicide prevention and mental health has been “profound”.
He said: “He has done it in a way that has resonated and impacted communities where these conversations are often taboo, but where they are so needed.
“The fact that he has been so open, so vulnerable about his mental health journey, his thoughts of suicide, he is really helping to destigmatise conversations that are too often shrouded in shame.”
The 22-year-old rapper previously shared a series of intimate TikTok videos documenting his life story, including his battle with depression and anxiety during his rise to fame.
And Amit said Nas’ “unapologetic” approach to mental health is not only inspirational to LGBTQ youth, but also people of colour.
He added: “It’s particularly inspiring to see someone who is Black and LGBTQ and proud and unapologetic. And to see someone talk about their experiences with depression and anxiety and suicidal ideation and to talk about those as part of their art and part of their platform to make other people comfortable talking about the challenges that they are going through.”
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