Lil Nas X‘s father, Robert Stafford, shared gut-wrenching details about the out rapper’s recent hospitalization and arrest — acknowledging the financial pressures and family issues that he was quietly dealing with for many years.
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“I went to visit him in jail, and as soon as I walked through that door, I couldn’t do anything but cry,” Stafford, who is 56, told The Times. “To see my baby boy on the other side of that glass. We shed tears with each other for a minute. I had to tell him that ‘what you’re going through is normal. We all have breakdowns every now and then, but the difference is, yours get played out in the public eye.'”
56-year-old Stafford reflected, “For a 26-year-old to have to deal with what he’s dealing with — to be a breadwinner for a lot of people, the inability to change his mother’s situation, and the pressure he puts on himself…That can weigh heavily on your heart.”
For instance, Nas X has been trying to help his mother for many years, but Stafford revealed that she’s refused all of her son’s attempts thus far. (Nas X’s mother, Tameka Hill, has reportedly struggled with substance abuse, homelessness, and financial insecurity for many years, Rap-Up reports.)
\u200bLil Nas X, his father Robert Stafford, and young family members at a screening for the Lil Nas X: Long Live Montero documentary at the Toronto International Film Festival in September 2023
Valeria Macon/AFP Via Getty Images
Lil Nas X, his father Robert Stafford, and young family members at a screening for the Lil Nas X: Long Live Montero documentary at the Toronto International Film Festival in September 2023.
Elsewhere in the interview, Stafford recalled watching Nas X’s leaked videos — shared exclusively by TMZ — and feeling like he didn’t recognize his son. “That’s not even him,” Stafford reflected.
“When I went to visit, [Nas X] asked me to say, ‘Tell everybody I’m sorry they saw me like that,'” Stafford told the publication. “Even in that moment, he was apologizing to people for something he was going through.”
Looking ahead, Stafford is hopeful that “this is a turning point in [Nas X’s] mental stability.”
Lil Nas X’s complicated relationship with his parents over the years.
\u200bLil Nas X being interviewed by Ellen DeGeneres on The Ellen DeGeneres Show in September 2019.
Warner Bros. Television
Lil Nas X being interviewed by Ellen DeGeneres on The Ellen DeGeneres Show in September 2019.
In the immediate aftermath of spending a record-breaking 19 weeks in the No. 1 spot of the Billboard Hot 100 charts with “Old Town Road,” Nas X discussed his coming-out journey in an interview from September 2019 on The Ellen DeGeneres Show.
“Last year I was at my sister’s house. I was sleeping on my sister’s floor, promoting my music” Nas X told DeGeneres in that interview. “I couldn’t go back home. My parents would be like, ‘You’re out of school for music? What are you doing?’ Which, you know, it’s understandable.”
DeGeneres remarked on Nas X’s record-breaking stint on the Billboard Hot 100 at the time, and expressed her admiration for the rapper. “Here you are, at the height of your brand-new career, and you decide to come out,” DeGeneres said, as a celebrity whose own coming-out story wasn’t well received in show business.
Nas X explained how he told his father and his sister in advance, but not too much in advance, saying: “I guess I gave them like a heads-up…a little earlier in the month.”
At the time, Nas X’s mention of his father and sister — but not his mother — didn’t necessarily stand out. In hindsight, however, it was a clue that their relationship was more complicated, perhaps, and he just wasn’t ready to talk about it yet.
In 2021, Lil Nas X’s father defended his son during the ‘Montero (Call Me By Your Name)’ music video controversy.
\u200bLil Nas X in the Montero (Call Me By Your Name) music video
Columbia Records
Lil Nas X in the ‘Montero (Call Me By Your Name)’ music video.
Nas X released the controversial “Montero (Call Me By Your Name)” music video in March 26, 2021, for which he immediately received a flood of attacks and criticism.
On April 15, 2021 — just a few weeks after that music video dropped — Stafford shared a rare image of the rapper with both of his parents.
Stafford wrote in the caption, “Despite what people say @lilnasx is the greatest kid a parent can be BLESSED with. Although his mom is in a struggle with an addiction, she’s STILL a QUEEN and he goes through great lengths to make sure we’re taking care of. Those who have family members and friends dealing with addiction understands that there ain’t enough money you can throw at this situation to make it right.”
“I don’t usually address personal issues publicly but felt like this need to be,” Stafford concluded. “Please join us in keeping her in your PRAYERS. And to those out there trying to create a false story you won’t prosper.”
Nas X spent three days in jail after a series of events that started to unfold last weekend. He was released Monday, August 25, on $75,000 bail, and entered a plea of not guilty to four felony charges following an alleged altercation with police officers.
On Tuesday, August 26, Nas X shared a new video via Instagram Story trying to reassure his fans that he will be all right.
“Your girl is gonna be OK, y’all. OK? She’s going to be all right; she’s gonna be all right,” Nas X said in the video. “Shit. That was fucking terrifying. That was terrifying. That was a terrifying last four days. But your girl is gonna be all right.”
This article originally appeared on Out: Lil Nas X’s father shares heartbreaking details about rapper’s arrest