Can you picture Lil Nas X in drab hand-me-downs?

The record-breaking country-rap crossover sensation, who came out as gay last summer, later said he hoped he was "opening doors." But at one point he thought he would never come out of the closet.

"The honest truth is, I planned to die with the secret," he tells The Guardian in a new interview. "But that changed when I became Lil Nas X."

Growing up in Georgia as Montero Lamar Hill, he was discouraged from living his truth by the homophobia and bullying he saw his openly gay peers experience.

While wearing his cousin's hand-me-downs or blah clothes from Zara and H&M, he also never believed he would have the bravery or resources to rock outrageous queer outfits like his pink Versace Grammys lewk or the neon-green Christopher John Rogers suit he wore to the American Music Awards.

"I’m trying to—no, I will build myself up as a superstar, and fashion will be a big part of that," the 21-year-old Grammy winner declares, crediting stylist Hodo Musa.

"I 100% want to represent the LGBT community," he says, acknowledging that his music hasn't delved into his sexuality—and expressing concern for impressionable young fans debating whether to come out. "I don’t want to encourage them to do something they don't 100% want to do. Especially in, like, middle school or high school. Because it’s just super hard."

"It’s easier for me," he continues. "I’m not depending on anybody. There’s no one who’s going to kick me out of the house—nobody to start treating me shitty."

Currently recording his next album, Lil Nas X says these new songs will explicitly explore his queer identity, The Guardian reports, and that his social advocacy will be "through my art."

Speaking of art and fashion, he is now showing skin in Calvin Klein’s spring 2020 #MyCalvins campaign.