Lil Nas X’s father, Robert Stafford, has shared his reaction to his son’s arrest for allegedly assaulting police officers after getting stopped for walking naked down a Los Angeles street.
Stafford spoke with the UK’s Sunday Times in an interview published on Friday, Aug. 29, and said he broke down when he saw his son jailed.
“I went to visit him in jail, and as soon as I walked through that door, I couldn’t do anything but cry,” Stafford recalled. “To see my baby boy on the other side of that glass. We shed tears with each other for a minute.”
Related: Lil Nas X Makes First Comments Since ‘Terrifying’ Arrest
The heartbroken dad said his 26-year-old son, born Montero Lamar Hill, suffered a “breakdown,” and described the situation as the cost of fame.
He said he told his son, “We all have breakdowns every now and then, but the difference is, yours played out in the public eye.”
On Thursday morning, Aug. 21, LAPD officers responded to calls about a “nude man walking in the street,” as previously reported.
Video published by TMZ showed the Grammy-winning artist wearing white underwear and cowboy boots as he sang and danced down Ventura Boulevard in the San Fernando Valley around 4 a.m.
A video later posted to social media showed Lil Nas X nude and barefoot as he walked in the middle of the street and cars drove past. He was taken into custody and transported to a hospital amid concerns he might be suffering from an overdose, according to the LAPD.
Stafford said his son has been struggling due to his mother’s widely-reported issues with substance abuse, and Lil Nas X’s meteoric rise after releasing the hit 2018 single, “Old Town Road.”
He said his son apologized for his arrest.
“When I went to visit he asked me to say, ‘tell everybody I’m sorry they saw me like that,’” he said. “Even in that moment, he was apologizing to people for something he was going through.”
A rep for the rapper did not respond to Urban Hollywood 411‘s request for comment.
Lil Nas X was charged with four felonies — three counts of battery with injury on a police officer and one count of resisting an executive officer.
After spending four days in lockup, the Atlanta-born rapper made his first court appearance at the Van Nuys Courthouse on Monday, Aug. 25. Prosecutors alleged he assaulted officers who tried to detain him, leaving at least three of them injured.
The rapper’s attorney told the judge there’s no evidence drugs were involved. Prosecutors did not mention if blood tests were taken at the hospital.
The rapper pleaded not guilty and was released on $75,000 bond. A judge ordered him to attend Narcotics Anonymous meetings or enroll in a treatment program.
Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman released a statement calling the artist a “threat” to the public.
“Attacking police officers is more than just a crime against those individuals but a direct threat to public safety,” said Hochman.
The rapper is scheduled to return to court on Sept. 15. If convicted as charged, he faces up to five years in state prison, according to the district attorney’s Office.
Discover more from Urban Hollywood 411
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
