“Old Town Road” by Lil Nas X has been recently dethroned from its perch atop the Billboard Hot 100. A title held by the trap-rap song for an unheard of 19 consecutive weeks. Since its inception as a meme song on tik toc, “Old Town Road” has evolved into a mainstay to any social gathering whether it be at a high school dance, the club, or on the porch of a retirement home filled with racists.

The brilliant fusion of trap and country by Lil Nas X helped the song cross all types of barriers from racial, cultural, and socioeconomic. Not since the printing press invented by Johannes Gutenberg in 1439 has there been such a cultural revolution. Time can only tell the total ramifications of "Old Town Road” on the global psyche. However, since its stay of 19 weeks we are beginning to see these changes:

1. Defeated Racism in America

Lil Nas X blending two genres that WAS seen as predominately black (hip-hop/rap) and predominately white (country) help solve the problem that has plagued America for centuries.

…. scratch that point.

2. A Pro LGBTQ+ Message Song is on the mainstream

Since Lil Nas X came out as gay at the end of June. The lyrics of the song have taken a whole new dimension. The elves at Genius are now scouring every line to find the hidden message of the song. The effect of a pro LGBTQ+ song on the No.1 for 19 consecutive weeks remains to be seen. Will America finally be a more accepting and welcoming culture??!?!1

Uhhhh… shut up I am keeping this point in.

3. Revealing the Deep Psychological Trauma Within Billy Ray Cyrus

Now we are delving into the main crux of my dissertation here. A point gleefully ignored by mainstream media. Billy Ray Cyrus is desperately crying for help and everyone besides me is ignoring his plead. Grab your scuba gear because we about to do a deep dive.

“Baby’s got a habit / Diamond rings and Fendi sports bra / Riding down Rodeo in my Maserati sports car.”

That’s the hardest hitting bar of 2019. Billy Ray is acutely describing his newfound life in the Hollywood Hills. His women (Baby) has a sweet tooth for things flashy “Diamond rings and Fendi sports bra”. And Billy Ray can’t help but to oblige her because he loves her, and he loves the new lifestyle.

“Hat down, cross town, livin’ like a Rockstar/ Spent a lot of money on my brand new guitar

…

Ridin’ down Rodeo in my Maserati sports car/ Got no stress, I’ve been through all that/ I’m like a Marlboro Man so I kick on back”

These lines also demonstrate Billy Ray’s love for his new and indulgent life. However, the next line is of interest and is the glue that holds the song together.

“Wish I could roll on back to that old town road/ I wanna ride ‘til I can’t no more”

Astute listeners to the song will no doubt get whiplash from the tonal shift from Billy Ray. One second he is loving life and the next second his voice is filled with longing to his old Tennessean days. He wants to go back to his old town road (Tennessee) and be there ‘til [Billy] can’t no more (till the day he unfortunately croaks).

The real tragedy here is that Billy clearly and eloquently lays out to his mass audience what he wants for the rest of his life. While, we (the audience) hear but do not listen to his plea.

If that isn’t the death of the American Dream: I don’t know what is.