Lil Nas X opens up to Gayle King about coming out, sleeping on floors before success

Lil Nas X, whose "Old Town Road" shattered the record for longest-running No. 1 song on Billboard's Hot 100 this summer, is now opening up about his rise to fame.

During Tuesday's "CBS This Morning," the Georgia native born Montero Lamar Hill, spoke to co-anchor Gayle King about coming out in the spotlight and more.

The "Panini" artist, 20, said it's easier to be out amid his popularity and fame.

"Me being in this position, like, it's easy for me. But, like, some little boy ten miles from here, it's not gonna be good for him," he said.

He added that growing up, "If you did anything like slightly feminine, they're like 'don't do that gay (expletive).' "

While he acknowledged that his coming out publicly could help those in that situation, he said "we still have a long way to go."

"Somebody who's listenin' to me in school right now, it's, like 'You're gay, 'cause you're listening to him,' " Lil Nas X said. "So it's, like, there's still (a) lot to be done, of course, but I do believe it's helping."

The sit-down was teased Monday on the morning program. During their conversation, the musician revealed that he hoped to God his attraction to men wasn't permanent. "Definitely. I knew," he said of being aware of his sexual orientation at an early age. "Especially around my teenage years, I would just pray and pray and pray and..."

"What were you praying for?" King inquired.

"That it was, like, a phase," he answered, saying it wasn't until he was 16 or 17 that he was "good with this."

The artist closed out Pride month by addressing his sexuality.

The artist asked his then-1.4 million Twitter followers to take a close look at the lyrics to "c7osure," prompting some fans to wonder if he was coming out.

"Some of y’all already know, some of y’all don’t care, some of y’all not gone fwm no more. but before this month ends i want y’all to listen closely to c7osure," he tweeted June 30, along with a rainbow emoji.

Lil Nas X confirmed the speculation the next day tweeting, "just cuz i’m gay don’t mean i’m not straight."

Days after coming out, he told the BBC he was already experiencing backlash.

"I used to be that person being negative,” he told the BBC. “I’m not angry or anything (about it), because I understand how they just want that reaction."

Lil Nas X also talked about the struggles he faced while trying to make it big, including sleeping on his sister's floor.

These challenges, he says, have helped him "count his blessings" with his success, saying he didn't get upset when he found out his song was dubbed, as King put it, "not country enough" for the country charts.

"I could see how anybody else would be upset, but it's like, you’re talking to someone who’s been sleeping on floors for the past couple of months who's trying to get some kind of song to move," he said. "This is the least of my worries pretty much."

King reported that, before fame, the artist also worked at Taco Bell, Zaxby's and Six Flags, which he quit to focus on his music.

Now, having found success with "Old Town Road," he says it means "anything for anybody (is possible). It's like a cliche thing to say, but it can happen for you."

Contributing: Cydney Henderson, Georgia Slater

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Lil Nas X on coming out, sleeping on floors before 'Old Town Road'