Lil Nas X is adding another prestigious honor to his impressive list of accomplishments.
Since exploding onto the pop culture scene less than three years ago, the 22-year-old music superstar has won two Grammys, two MTV Video Music Awards, four Billboard Music Awards among other accolades celebrating his work as a chart-topping superpower.
Now his work as an advocate for LGBTQ youth is also being recognized by The Trevor Project, the world’s largest suicide prevention and crisis intervention organization for LGBTQ and questioning youth.
On Wednesday the group announced that the “Old Town Road” rapper was the recipient of its inaugural Suicide Prevention Advocate of the Year Award.
He received the honor for demonstrating “an ongoing commitment to supporting The Trevor Project’s mission to end suicide among LGBTQ young people with his openness about struggling with his sexuality and suicidal ideation, his continued advocacy around mental health issues, and his unapologetic celebration of his queer identity,” according to a news release.
The award marks the start of National Suicide Prevention Awareness Month, a time to bring attention to the devastating reality of LGBTQ youth in the country, most of whom have to deal with high rates of discrimination, rejection, and social isolation — which can lead to increased risk for negative mental health outcomes such as anxiety, depression and suicide ideation.
Earlier this year, researchers with the organization found that 42% of LGBTQ youth seriously considered attempting suicide in the past year, including more than half of transgender and nonbinary youth.
The data was part of Trevor’s third National Survey of LGBTQ Youth Mental Health, in which researchers interviewed more than 35,000 respondents between the ages of 13 and 24 living in the United States from Oct. 12 to Dec. 31, 2020.
On Wednesday, Lil Nax X thanked the organization for the honor and “for all they do for the LGBTQ community.”
“Discrimination around sexuality and gender identity is still very real, and our community deserves to feel supported and totally free to be themselves,” he said in a statement.
“I often get messages from fans telling me about their struggles with depression and suicidal thoughts, and it made me realize that this was something bigger than myself. If using my voice and expressing myself in my music can help even one kid out there who feels alone, then it was all worth it,” he added.
Earlier this year, the rapper addressed self-loathing, gay guilt and suicidal thoughts in “Sun Goes Down,” a song that touches on the struggles the artist had growing up as a gay person, as well as the loneliness and desperation that accompanied the shame he felt just for being who he is.
In the video for the song, which he co-directed with Los Angeles-based Psycho Films, Lil Nas X goes back in time “to visit a younger version self who’s struggling inside, hating himself, & doesn’t want to live anymore,” he wrote on Twitter in May.
“I wanna run away/ Don’t wanna lie, I don’t want a life/ Send me a gun and I’ll see the sun,” he sings in the chorus, over understated chords.
The video shows his younger self working at a Taco Bell, looking lonely and hopeless, and walking into a heart-wrenching prom, where straight couples around him profess their love for each other and celebrate life.
Amit Paley, the organization’s CEO and executive director, said that Lil Nax X’s “vulnerability in his journey to self-acceptance and expression has created space for candid conversations around mental health and sexual identity, signaling to LGBTQ youth that they are not alone.”
Research shows that “over 80% of LGBTQ youth say that LGBTQ celebrities positively influence how they feel about being LGBTQ, further affirming the cultural impact of Lil Nas X being proud of who he is and an ideal recipient of this inaugural award,” he added.
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If you or someone you know is going through a crisis, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-TALK (8255). LGBTQ youth are encouraged to call TrevorLifeline at 866-488-7386, or text "START" to 678-678.
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