Rapper Lil Nas X pleaded not guilty Monday to four felonies alleging he charged police last week after “strolling naked down Ventura Boulevard in Studio City,” the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office announced.
The Aug. 21 incident unfolded in the early morning hours when the rapper, whose real name is Montero Lamar Hill, was spotted wearing only white underwear and matching white cowboy boots.
Video obtained by TMZ shows someone driving by the “Old Town Road” singer walking in the middle of the street at around 4 a.m. He tells the driver, “Don’t be late to the party,” as he walks away singing a melody to himself.
The footage, nearly two minutes long, captured him strutting down the road and stopping for a few dance moves, often mentioning the “party” and that the driver needs to put the phone down and leave him alone.
According to the Los Angeles Police Department, officers responded at around 5:40 a.m. to reports of a naked man walking the streets. In a news release, prosecutors say the Grammy Award winning artist assaulted the officers as they attempted to take him into custody, injuring at least three of them.
When he was eventually arrested, officers suspected a possible overdose and took him to the hospital before eventually transporting him to jail.
The charges, three felony counts of battery with injury on a police officer and a felony count of resisting an executive officer, filed Monday in the Van Nuys Courthouse are far more serious than initial reports that the 26-year-old was being investigated for a misdemeanor.
“Attacking police officers is more than just a crime against those individuals but a direct threat to public safety,” Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan J. Hochman said. “Anyone who assaults law enforcement will face serious consequences, no matter who they are or how famous they may be.”
If convicted as charged, Hill could face up to five years in state prison, the DA’s release noted. A pre-trial hearing is scheduled for Sept. 15.
Held in custody over the weekend, Hill was released today on $75,000 bond conditional on attending four Narcotics Anonymous meetings a week or attending an outpatient drug treatment program, NBC News reported.
The rapper and singer from Atlanta is best known for 2018’s country and hip-hop merging “Old Town Road,” which spent a record 19 weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and won him his Grammys.
Known for his genre-bending, innovating sounds and style, his first full studio album, 2021’s “Montero,” went to No. 2 on the Billboard album chart and was nominated for a Grammy for album of the year.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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