The Short Rise and Long Tail of Lil Nas X
“Old Town Road” was just the beginning for the 20-year-old rapper and meme artist, but of what?

Lil Nas X’s smash “Old Town Road” has spent 12 weeks at the top of the singles chart. But his new EP, “7,” doesn’t have the same spark.

In its 12th week atop the Billboard Hot 100 chart, “Old Town Road” has become as vaporous as the faint din of car honks emanating from the street outside a closed window — it’s there, but not really there. A hazy memory of a sugar-rush headache. The song you’ll sing at karaoke, or your kid’s birthday party, or your high school reunion, to remind everyone how silly and carefree you once were.