NEW YORK - Country-rap megastar Lil Nas X is riding off into the sunset, at least for the moment, posting on Twitter that he will take a break and cancel two shows following a meteoric rise in the charts.

His now-ubiquitous record-breaking megahit "Old Town Road" -- which marries twangy banjo with thumping bass -- catapulted the previously unknown artist into the celebrity stratosphere.

The song broke the decades-old record for longest reign over the Billboard Hot 100, the industry's most closely watched singles chart, holding the spot for 19 weeks and fending off advances from pop juggernauts including Taylor Swift and Justin Bieber.

On Friday he posted on Twitter that "it's been a wild last 7 months and I'm ready to take a little time off."

He also sent his apologies to "everyone attending twitchcon or the sandbox music festival, I will not be there. I love u guys and will make it up to you some way."

The festivals are scheduled to take place in Arizona and San Diego, California respectively.

The Atlanta native, who earlier this year was a college dropout crashing on his sister's couch, released his first EP, called "7," in June.

In August, he received the prize for Best Song at MTV's annual Video Music Awards.