Lil Nas X broke the internet with the release of “Montero (Call Me By Your Name).” The lead single to his debut album arrived alongside a viral video where he gives the devil a lap dance, which helped it secure the top spot on the Billboard Hot 100. Now the song is all but guaranteed a second life as it’s getting the Kidz Bop treatment.
Anyone who grew up in the early aughts experienced the birth of Kidz Bop first hand.
Since debuting in 2001, the rotating group of tweens has put a glossy, safe-for-kids spin on the biggest current musical hits. That includes classics by the likes of Britney Spears and *NSYNC.
The Kidz Bop Kids’ takes on the classics often became hits of their own. BuzzFeed noted that the group amassed 24 albums that debuted within the Top 10 on the charts. That’s a feat that has only been bested by the Beatles, Barbra Streisand, Frank Sinatra and the Rolling Stones. Really, a case of legends only.
The group is still dropping projects today. They are readying the release of Kidz Bop 2022, which will apparently include a cover of Lil Nas X’s second chart-topper.
The hit-maker took to Twitter to laughingly share the news. “They are really making a kidz bop version,” he wrote.
“Not even joking,” he added in a second tweet.
To prove it, the rapper included a snippet of the group’s latest commercial, which shows them performing the track while skipping down a school hallway. “They killed it tho,” he noted.
It remains to be seen how the group will sanitize lyrics that reference drugs and alcohol alongside fairly explicit mentions of sex. But it’s bound to be iconic.
The full trailer for the new Kidz Bop release also previews bops including Olivia Rodrigo’s “Good 4 U,” Dua Lipa’s “Levitating” and Justin Bieber’s “Peaches.” Check it out below.
It’s worth pointing out that this isn’t the first time Kidz Bop has tackled a classic by Lil Nas X. With more than 23 million streams, their take on his chart-dominating “Old Town Road” remains one of the group’s most popular listens on Spotify.
The accompanying video was a smash with nearly 68 million views on YouTube.
The talented kids also covered “Panini” off his 7 EP.
Although they’ve reimagined his hits before, this appears to be his first explicit track that they’ll repurpose.
It also seems to be one of the rapper’s most personal songs to date. Upon the release of “Montero (Call Me By Your Name,” he took to social media to pen an open-letter to his younger self about queer representation and living proudly as an out star.
“You see this is scary for me,” he explained. “People will be angry, they will say I’m pushing an agenda. But the truth is, I am. The agenda to make people stay the f–k out of other people’s lives and stop dictating who they should be.”
While Kidz Bop’s cover of the track isn’t out yet, this isn’t the first time “Montero (Call Me By Your Name)” has been prepped for kids.
Earlier this year The Moonies covered the track. Lil Nas X appears to be a fan. His comment “stan the moonies” was pinned to the top of the accompanying music video on YouTube.