Lil Nas X Singing "Old Town Road" With Schoolkids Was the Best Thing on the Internet in 2019

Happy first birthday to "Old Town Road".

On 2 December 2018, a 19-year-old college dropout with the Twitter handle "nope" recorded a goofy little song about cowboy culture—using a "country-trap" beat that sampled Nine Inch Nails, purchased for just $30—and immediately uploaded it to the internet.

Now, twelve months later, that rapper, Lil Nas X, is a six-time Grammy-nominated queer icon with the longest-running #1 single on America’s Billboard Hot 100 chart.

Needless to say, "Old Town Road" has had a hell of a ride. Even in Australia, its success can’t be taken for granted (despite it eventually getting overrun by Tones and I’s dominant "Dance Monkey").

And though it was technically released in late 2018, the fact that it didn’t gain prominence until March of this year—after becoming a TikTok meme and scoring a re-release by Columbia Records—means you can’t argue against it being one of the defining songs of 2019. (The same argument goes for Lizzo’s two-year-old "Truth Hurts", which finally charted in 2019 too.)

So, when selecting the best "thing" to happen on the internet this year, you've got to at least acknowledge all of Lil Nas X’s milestones, from the country-rap controversy he inspired, to his laissez-faire coming out, to his adorable feud with Fiona Apple.

However, nothing topped the moment he visited Lander Elementary in Cleveland, Ohio and treated the primary school children to a singalong of his megahit in May.

Not only was it the best internet moment of the year, but it should also be named Best Picture at the coming Academy Awards.

Jump to 3:38 and bask in the absolute beauty below:

There are so many highlights.

This kid:

This kid with the hat:

This kid again:

And this kid, the loosest unit of them all:

Above all though, what made this special was the reminder that an artist can still be meaningful, and mean a lot to a whole lot of people, while still just making music that purely sparks joy.

One more time: