Overview

Lil Nas X's Satan Shoes refers to a controversy surrounding the release of limited-edition Satan-themed sneakers by rapper Lil Nas X and art collective MSCHF. The sneakers' air bubble sole contains red ink and "one drop" of human blood, with the edition limited to 666 pairs and the price tag referencing a Bible verse about Satan. The release, which coincided with the release of Lil Nas X's music video "MONTERO" that featured Biblical themes, was met with criticism from conservative and religious influencers and politicians online in late March 2021.

Background

"MONTERO (Call Me by Your Name)" Release

On March 26th, 2021, Lil Nas X released his single "MONTERO (Call Me by Your Name)" and a music video for the song,^[1][2] which featured the use of Biblical and mythological themes. Scenes in the video include Lil Nas X, dressed as Adam, kissing the snake in the Garden of Eden, Lil Nas X descending to hell by sliding down a pole as he dances on it, and the singer giving Satan a lap dance while wearing thigh-high boots with stiletto heels. The video received over 31.5 million views in four days (shown below).

Call me when you want, call me when you need
Call me in the morning, I'll be on the way.

On March 26th, 2021, Lil Nas X posted^[14] a letter to himself about coming out as gay, addressing himself by his given name Montero.

Satan Shoes

Also on March 26th, New York-based art collective MSCHF presented a limited-edition edition of sneakers made using Nike Air Max 97 shoes.^[3] The black-and-red sneakers, adorned with a metallic pentagram and an air bubble sole containing 60 cubic centimeters (2.03 ounces) of red ink with "one drop" of human blood mixed in, are priced at $1,018 (referencing the Luke 10:18 Bible verse reading "I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven"). The shoes were also released in a limited edition of 666 pairs, with 666 being the "number of the beast."

On the same day, fashion blog @saint tweeted^[4] about the release, with the tweet gaining over 7,500 retweets and 46,100 likes (tweet shown below).

Developments

Lil Nas X's Bait-and-Switch "Apology"

On March 28th, 2021, following the controversy surrounding the presentation of the Satan Shoes, Lil Nas X posted a fake apology video that cut to the Satan lap dance scene from the "MONTERO" music video.^[5] The video (shown below) accumulated over 2.6 million views in two days, while a tweet^[6] linking the video gained over 11,000 retweets and 143,300 likes in the same period.

Nike's Statement

On March 28th, 2021, Nike released a statement in which the brand distanced itself from the shoes.^[7]

We do not have a relationship with Little Nas X or MSCHF. Nike did not design or release these shoes and we do not endorse them.

Lawsuit

On March 29th, 2021, Nike filed a lawsuit^[15] against MSCHF Product Studio, claiming that the company allegedly engaged in trademark infringement, false designation of origin and trademark dilution. In the lawsuit, Nike attached multiple screenshots of social media comments in which users spoke negatively of the company and promised not to buy Nike shoes again.

MSCHF is deceiving consumers into believing that Nike manufactures or approves of the Satan Shoes, and consumers’ belief that the Satan Shoes are genuine Nike products is causing consumers to never want to purchase any Nike products in the future.

Online Reactions

The release of the Satan Shoes, and to a lesser degree the music video, was met with criticisms from religious and conservative groups, influencers and politicians online. For example, on May 27th, 2021, Pastor Mark Burns denounced the product as "evil and heresy," with the tweet^[8] gaining over 360 retweets and 1,200 likes in two days (shown below, left). On March 28th, 2021, South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem tweeted^[9] about the sneakers, with the tweet gaining over 4,000 retweets and 22,100 likes in one day (shown below, center). On the same day, conservative author Candace Owens posted a tweet^[10] that received over 26,900 retweets and 119,000 likes (shown below, right).

On March 28th and 29th, multiple viral posts denouncing the product were posted on social media. During that period, Lil Nas X made a number of viral quote retweets mocking those criticizing him and the shoes (examples shown below).^[11][12]

On March 29th, Lil Nas X reached top trends on Twitter in the United States with 248,800 tweets.^[13]

Search Interest

External References