Oliver Anthony Is Not Here For Your Political Binary
You really have to sit back, crack a grin, and slow clap for this Oliver Anthony guy, regardless of how you feel about “Rich Men North of Richmond,” or the Fudge Rounds line.
It’s been 23 days since the 31-year-old released his mega viral song and video. The song is spending its second week in a row at the very top of the Billboard Hot 100, beating out every single other song in America. And meanwhile, Oliver Anthony’s rhetoric has pretty much everyone who initially supported him or steadfastly rebuked him twisted up and second guessing themselves as he refuses to fit nice and neatly into their political binary.
The widespread support Oliver Anthony enjoys spans across political, social, and geographical, and racial lines. It includes an international reach, and cross-genre support well beyond country music. Hip-hop critics even love it. It’s probably the biggest musical phenomenon since Lil Nas X and “Old Town Road” back in 2018. Perhaps, it’s even bigger.
Make no mistake, after an initial viral burst behind Oliver Anthony that was similar to the one we’ve seen behind similar earnest acoustic videos, it was right-wing influencers, politicians, and media types who believed Oliver Anthony was their conservative savior in popular music, singing his praises to the rafters. Meanwhile, this political element to his ascent artificially colored many people’s opinion of Anthony and the song as it continued to trend.
A lot of people went on record saying the whole thing was a hose job. It was either “Astroturfing” or Oliver Anthony was an “industry plant,” orchestrated by these right-wing operatives. And despite not a single credible report undercutting the official Oliver Anthony narrative, (and yes, we’ve seen the viral tweets that still prove nothing), Oliver Anthony eviscerated everybody’s working theories by coming out and actively distancing himself from every single one of those opportunistic political vultures who initially promoted him.
In his second explainer video posted on August 25th, Oliver Anthony stated,
The one thing that has bothered me is people wrapping up politics into all of this. It’s aggravating seeing people on conservative news try to identify with me like I’m one of them. It’s aggravating seeing certain musicians and politicians act like we’re buddies and act like we’re fighting the same struggle here, like we’re trying to present the same message.
I’ve had a lot of people reach out to me, and I’ve tried to be polite to everybody. I’ve talked to hundreds of people the last two weeks. It seems like certain people want to just ride the attention of the song and maybe make their own selves relevant. And that is aggravating as hell.
Telling these political vultures folks to take a hike so his music and career wouldn’t be colored by their presence is exactly what Saving Country Music advised Oliver Anthony to do, though it’s doubtful he read it. These decisions speak to the his instincts, and the content of his character. It’s not that Anthony doesn’t want to be considered with the right wing, but that he doesn’t want to be considered in the political binary at all. As for his song being the basis for the first question of the first Republic Presidential debate, Anthony says,
It was funny seeing it in the Presidential Debate cause I wrote that song about those people, you know? So for them to have to sit there and listen to that, that cracks me up. But it was funny seeing the response to it. That song has nothing to do with Joe Biden. It’s a lot bigger than Joe Biden. That song was written about the people on that stage, and a lot more too, not just them. But definitely them.
I hate to see that song weaponized. I see the right trying to characterize me as their own, and I see the left trying to discredit me, I guess in retaliation. That shit’s gotta stop. If you watch the response videos on YouTube to this song, it’s not conservative people responding to the song. It’s not even necessarily Americans responding to the song. I don’t know that I’ve seen anything get such positive response from such a diverse group of people, and I think that terrifies the people that I sing about in that song.
And they’ve done everything they can in the last two weeks to make me look like a fool, to spin my words, to try and stick me in a political bucket, and they can keep trying. But I’m just gonna keep on writing … I’m going to write, produce, and distribute authentic music that represents people, and not politics.
First impressions are a big though. And due to the Fudge Rounds line in “Rich Men North of Richmond,” Oliver Antony has a lot of critics who will criticize and and undercut everything he does. Though it won’t help with his most staunchest detractors, Anthony did address the controversial line in the same video, and explained how the song was written after he read a news article about food insecurity for kids in Richmond.
The English language is interpretive, and so I do understand that there may be some people who misunderstood my words. But I’ve got to be clear that my message like with any of my songs, it references the inefficiencies of the government because of the politicians within it that are engulfed in bribes and extortion.
Adolescent kids in Richmond are missing meals over the summer because their parents can’t afford to feed them, and they’re not in school to eat cafeteria lunch. And meanwhile, I think like 30 or 40 percent of the food bought with welfare EBT money is in a classification of like snack food and soda … And that’s not the fault of those people.
Welfare only makes up a small percentage of our budget. If we can fuel a proxy war in a foreign land, but we can’t take care of our own, that’s all the song’s trying to say. It’s just saying that the government takes people who are needy dependent, and makes them needy and dependent. 30 million people understood what I was saying, but it only takes a few to try and derail the train, to try and send out false narratives.
Oliver Anthony said it best when he said, “It’s driving people crazy to see the unity that has come from this,” and he’s right. So much money and attention is gained by playing one side against the other, couching things as either left or right, and then pitting people against each other. But where the true majority opinion resides is with people who are simply fed up with everything, irrespective of political affiliation, and they are especially fed up with the polarization. That is why “Rich Men North of Richmond” is resonating with them.
Many musicians also resent Oliver Anthony due to his overnight success. But as Anthony says himself,
I’m nobody special. I feel terrible almost that I’ve been put in this place because there are a lot of artists and musicians that are far more talented, that have put in way more hours than me. I don’t deserve to sit in the top 5 places on the iTunes charts. And the truth is I could really give a shit about the iTunes charts. What I care about is connecting with people.
Just for us to all sit here and do the stupid shit that it is we do everyday that keeps us all beat down and divided, that’s what I want to see stop. And I’m going to do everything I can to influence that, at all costs, even if it throws my world upside down. It’s well worth it.
On Wednesday (8/30), Oliver Anthony appeared on the Joe Rogan Experience. He could have appeared on Fox News, which has been obsessed with Anthony since the beginning. FOX conducted the Presidential Debate where Anthony’s song prefaced the opening question. He could have appeared on CNN or MSNBC as well. But similar to Oliver Anthony, Joe Rogan has assembled the biggest audience in all of media by eschewing the political binary, despite great efforts by his adversaries in the mainstream media to assign him to one side or another.
Though it started out rather lighthearted, the discussion between Joe Rogan and Oliver Anthony got quite deep in moments. Unlike Rogan’s recent discussion with Zach Bryan who seemed a bit starry-eyed to be sitting across from Rogan, Oliver Anthony seemed surprisingly comfortable, confident in the subjects he broached, and assured of the opinions he shared, despite only being a few weeks into the phenomenon that has taken over his life.
Oliver Anthony talked about how watching The Dukes of Hazzard as a kid and hearing Waylon Jennings is what initially made him a country music fan. He quoted The Bible on a couple of occasions, but revealed that he hasn’t been to church in 10 years. Anthony talked about a head injury he suffered, which Rogan attributed to his bout of depression that led to Anthony deciding he needed a change in his life, and had to start pursuing music before it was too late.
Anthony also talked about how he has taken on a mentor in the music industry. And no, it’s not John Rich. Though he was reluctant to name him by name (Joe Rogan eventually said the quiet part out loud), Oliver Anthony is being closely advised by Jamey Johnson.
“I don’t want to say his name on here and disrupt his privacy, but there’s one guy in particular that … he’s just a really good dude. He’s everything you think he is, but he’s just been a big help, like almost kind of a father figure in the industry. Despite all the craziness and all the people that have come out, just clawing at me … there’s also been a lot of just down-to-earth people that just have the interest of me trying to preserve whatever it is I’ve created here and turn it into something … to keep me on the train tracks.”
Oliver Anthony also talked to Rogan about how his 2nd most popular song “Aint Gotta Dollar” (6.7 million streams on Spotify alone) was simply recorded on his Android phone. Yes, this Oliver Anthony phenomenon goes well beyond “Rich Men North of Richmond.” The song/video he released after “Rich Men” called “I Want To Go Home” has over 6 million views on YouTube as well.
Oliver Anthony is not a one-hit wonder. He is a cultural phenomenon. And that cultural phenomenon is epicentered in the rise of earnest, acoustic songwriters that has also seen artists like Tyler Childers and Zach Bryan defy expectations and crash through ceilings previously erected over unpolished, grassroots country artists. Oliver Anthony is this phenomenon reaching the very apex of popularity in all of American music, at a time when country music is dominating the top of the popular charts like we have never seen before in history. Garth Brooks, eat your heart out.
If there was ever a moment in the last 15+ years of the existence of Saving Country Music where you could make the case that the music has been saved, it would be this one. But this assessment and proclamation probably just made quite a few spit out their coffee, because despite Oliver Anthony’s popularity, his critics are stern, and strong in numbers as well.
As Joe Rogan said near the end of his discussion with Anthony about his detractors, “They don’t even realize they’re working for you. They’re just making you more popular.” And they are, just like they worked for Morgan Wallen, and just like they worked for Jason Aldean. And just like they worked for Joe Rogan, too.
This is not a craze. The greatest art in history is often the art that accurately reflects the time in which it appears. As the media and political class continue to make American political rage a commercial commodity, the common people across America are waking up. Oliver Anthony isn’t just singing for himself. He is singing from the perspective of all the disaffected and disenfranchised people of the United States and beyond.
Still people will cite the Fudge Rounds line. Still people will falsely accuse him of being an “industry plant” and a product of “Astroturfing” despite the continued lack of evidence. Still people will say his ascent was unearned, illegitimate, if not ill-gotten.
And next year, Oliver Anthony very well may be headlining festivals across the country, just like Zach Bryan did this year, despite the small, but extremely loud critics and cynics of his improbable ascent. But none of that will matter, because the people have spoken. And the people say that Oliver Anthony speaks for them.
August 31, 2023 @ 8:44 am
I’ll be the first to admit I was wrong about him. I thought this was a plant and suspicious, but he’s said all the right things since then I really applaud him for handling everything so well and not letting any political personality try and detract from his art. He’s converted me.
The only issue I ever had with the song is I think it lets the corporations off the hook. Don’t get me wrong, the politicians are corrupt, but they are mainly bought and paid for by the big business lobbyists. The politicians are interchangeable, but it is still the same big businesses and corporations buying them out and getting everything they can to screw over us working people.
Keep on keeping, Oliver. Your music does speak to a lot of right now, whether white, black, urban, rural etc. The rich men, the corporations and politicians, don’t want us to know how much we all have in common.
August 31, 2023 @ 9:08 am
I agree completely!
August 31, 2023 @ 9:47 am
I don’t disagree that corporations are crooked as hell and keep paying off politicians to do their bidding. But the corporations can’t do nearly the damage without a source of power to be bought. Government picking winners and losers, passing bad laws that favor the highest bidder, and politicians (elected officials and those nominated to to the highest levels of government agencies) taking seats on boards as handsome reward for doing corporate bidding–looking right at the DOJ and EPA–is what is making life worse for all of us. Government should be local so when they start looking after themselves, we can go down the road to their office and give them a piece of our mind rather than halfway across the country behind armed guards, calling a line whose voicemail box is full, or getting canned responses to emails. They don’t care about people. Our only use to them is to put them in office
August 31, 2023 @ 9:50 am
Bean agreed with you so that makes me third in line to admit I was wrong as well.
August 31, 2023 @ 9:56 am
During the podcast it was discussed that the song only had a verse or two and the rest was whipped up quickly so radiowv could publish on YouTube. Oliver said he didn’t even really want to send that song out and thought ‘Aint gotta dollar’ was the better song.
August 31, 2023 @ 7:47 pm
I mean, ok, if he’s not just a right wing stooge that’s great. But in evaluating country music, are we going to talk about how he only knows four chords?
September 1, 2023 @ 4:26 am
four chords and the truth….
September 1, 2023 @ 7:11 am
I don’t think his guitar playing is at all what drives him – it’s his message that’s along for the ride within those chords. So if you’re only hearing music, then you’re missing the whole point of it.
September 1, 2023 @ 7:41 am
Ok, then he’s a politician, not a musician. Good to know. I don’t like politicians.
September 1, 2023 @ 8:57 am
There is a long legacy of pretty mediocre instrumentalists with strong opinions in folk and country music. Pete Seeger, arguably Johnny Cash (my favorite country artist, and a legend, just not known for guitar playing), Hazel Dickens, and so on. I respect that you prefer your country music without a strong political bend, but if you discount every country singer who’s made their politics clear in their music, it’s a big ole chunk of country that you’d lose.
September 1, 2023 @ 9:47 am
A musician who cares about the world around them is one thing, a politician who knows four chords is another.
September 1, 2023 @ 7:16 am
That’s one more than he needs to know, though, right?
September 14, 2023 @ 6:49 am
Then he links up with right wing huckster Jordan Peterson. Very telling.
September 16, 2023 @ 8:12 am
And he pretty much stuck to his Unity message on that platform. He’s consistent everywhere he goes.
September 18, 2023 @ 9:51 am
Side point – it’s solved a guitar debate as to whether you can play a resonator without a Slide. of course you can, and it’s pretty good.
Oh and good points, he did say the right things after he got his fame. Fudge Rounds, cringe a bit – most welfare goes to children or mothers thereof. But hey nothing is perfect.
September 18, 2023 @ 4:25 pm
That is still down to politicians. If someone offers you money to kill someone you don’t have to say yes.
August 31, 2023 @ 8:48 am
Interesting story, thanks Trigger.
I’m glad the guy is most definitely not an idiot, too. He has very thoughtful reactions to the hoopla happening around him. I hope he stays true and soldiers on!
August 31, 2023 @ 11:30 am
tbt Id not looked into him closely (ignored all the hoopla) because I found his music so authentic and true, I wasnt ready to be disappointed. Im happily relieved after the Rogan interview. What a sweet soul.
August 31, 2023 @ 8:54 am
Props to him for brushing away the politics publicly. Curious about where his career goes once he gets in the studio under Jamey Johnson’s wing.
August 31, 2023 @ 9:07 am
Of all the people throwing their name to be attached to him, the one he chose is the best one and one that didn’t lobby loudly for it. I’m interested to see how Johnson influences his career, bonus points if this gets Johnsons back in the studio too (a guy can dream)
August 31, 2023 @ 9:11 am
Damn, its almost like he wrote a song just to express how he was feeling about life. Just like all the people who have sung songs for decades about the news of the day and how he was feeling. Didn’t take 5 writers or violent imagery to express what he was feeling.
How refreshing.
August 31, 2023 @ 9:15 am
Guess I’ll put my tweet here too:
In this country self-styled “independents” with moronic hard-right anti-guvment views are as common as cow turds in a pasture. Ultimately the most important thing to remember about his political views is that they’re incredibly stupid.
August 31, 2023 @ 9:24 am
I’ll add that it’s specifically a bunch of stupid right-wing crap that he got off the internet.
August 31, 2023 @ 10:00 am
This is a good reminder why I’m not on Twitter. Thanks!!
August 31, 2023 @ 10:01 am
Twitter couldn’t have gotten this thing more wrong, and on both sides of the aisle. The Oliver Anthony story really exemplifies the shortcomings of that format, where the incentives are for everyone to share their polarizing hot takes to pander to constituencies, while the truth of things get lost in the shuffle.
It’s been amusing to watch people contort themselves after Anthony has exposed himself to be way more thoughtful and adept than assumed initially by so many people. The fact that Jamey Johsnon, who is the most private, quiet, slow, and anti-social media person possible was the guy that got through to Anthony really is telling, as is the fact that some folks still won’t come off their “Astroturfing” hills because their pride won’t allow them to admit they were wrong. Oliver Anthony got the best of everyone, including myself in some respects. And good on him for it.
August 31, 2023 @ 11:48 am
Trigger, I read your initial review of Oliver Anthony’s song and thought you made some good points but ultimately misunderstood his message. It is not common for a blogger to change their views in light of more facts but that’s exactly what you did. I love your blog for that reason. You don’t sugarcoat your message and you’re humble enough to re-examine your viewpoint when new information comes to light.
August 31, 2023 @ 10:02 am
Really well said, Trig. This is the real thing.
August 31, 2023 @ 10:05 am
No matter if you’re OLIVER ANTHONY, or Joe Rogan, or me, if you want to sit in the Ravinia pavilion this weekend to see Carrie Underwood, it’s going to cost you $215.00 before fees. Most expensive ticket, country or otherwise, in the Midwest this year.
The lawn, which has no visibility to the stage is $77.00 before fees.
August 31, 2023 @ 10:26 am
Looks like they were scooped up by scalpers and are now being resold on Ticketmaster to cut their losses. Resale for around $130.
$215 for pavilion is not out of the ordinary. Lower bowl or floor seats are usually $500-$1500 for a lot of artists.
August 31, 2023 @ 10:22 am
Good interview. He sounds like the real deal.
August 31, 2023 @ 10:28 am
Great article. Only quibble is you definitely downplay his Christian witness. It wasn’t just quoting the Bible on a couple occasions. I don’t know your motives so I can’t offer further opinion. Other than that, solid.
August 31, 2023 @ 12:56 pm
Didn’t mean to downplay Anthony’s Christianity. When you take the stage at a show or go on Joe Rogan and quote Bible verses, obviously you’re pretty devout. I just found it and interesting footnote that he hasn’t been to church in 10 years.
August 31, 2023 @ 1:47 pm
Many of the “Rich Men North of Richmond” are ‘devout’, so far as their testimony goes. Unfortunately, those positions of power naturally select for people willing to compromise in order to win. If Anthony Oliver hasn’t been to church in 10 years, I have to guess at least part of the reason is because he’s fed up with more venomous strains of the right corrupting religion for their own gains, in this world or the next. And, it is fairly ironic, that these are the same goofballs noted in the article fluffing Anthony Oliver for their own gain.
August 31, 2023 @ 4:10 pm
People’s spirituality is always complex. You will always have the insanely devout on both sides (for and against), but I think most people fit somewhere in the middle. Either they go to church weekly, but then spend the rest of the week not living up to their values or they never see the inside of a church, but still read the bible.
We all have friends and family who fall into camps all along that spectrum in my experience.
August 31, 2023 @ 7:26 pm
The left is the side that has corrupted and devastated Christianity.
August 31, 2023 @ 9:37 pm
Right, Jesus of Nazareth would feel pefectly at home hanging out at CPAC.
September 1, 2023 @ 6:08 am
Money and political power corrupted and devastated Christianity.
It isn’t “the left” that did that. It’s when people decided to just shrug their shoulders will TV pastors flew around on private jets and when religious institutions could pay off victims (and their families) of abuse while wielding their political and social power in an attempt to keep victims quiet.
You do realize that constantly falling into the “left/right is to blame for X” just falls right into the game those in power are playing, right?
September 1, 2023 @ 10:12 am
….”Right, Jesus of Nazareth would feel perfectly at home hanging out at CPAC.”…..
CPAC is a corrupt political organization that exists to promote the interests of big-money Republican donors. It is not a “side”.
September 1, 2023 @ 1:05 pm
What a braindead take. The left aren’t the ones pushing for televangelist airplanes and the westboro baptist church, or violating the first amendment to clear out protesters for a photo shoot with a Bible. Jesus would not stand with the political right.
September 1, 2023 @ 4:09 pm
I can’t believe this…but I would like to agree with KHOC and his opinion about CPAC.
August 31, 2023 @ 4:49 pm
‘which Rogan attributed to his bout of depression that led to Anthony deciding he needed a change in his life, and had to start pursuing music before it was too late.’
Anthony was on the brink of suicide and turned to God as a last resort; just this spring/summer as I understood it. Then he cleaned himself up and focused intently on getting his music out there quickly for fear of dying a young man. It seems he believes divine intervention put him in the present spotlight, hence the witnessing at shows and the podcast.
In my opinion, this is the story about Anthony that is most interesting, and I’m glad he spent a large chunk of the podcast detailing his experiences that led him to this moment. The left/right culture war garbage is just so dull and uninspiring and I’m glad they didn’t talk about it in podcast, probably because he just doesn’t give a crap about it.
Time to get over ourselves and get back to what is important in life.
The Bible verse was Proverbs 4:20 which led to a good chuckle between Joe and Anthony.
August 31, 2023 @ 10:35 am
The funniest part, and I’m sure he’s LOL…this hit so fast and crazy…people aren’t paying attention to the fact his name isn’t Oliver Anthony!! 😆🤦🏻♀️
The Rogan interview was really good, I watched it on YT yesterday.
August 31, 2023 @ 10:48 am
He definitely seems like a pretty green songwriter who randomly went viral. I’m sure if he continues to grow as a writer he will probably stop playing a song that uses not one, but two different homophone rhymes (a word that sounds exactly like the word it rhymes with). Hope he keeps working on his craft, he seems like a decent guy. As for Joe Rogan, I take his advice: “I’m an idiot, nobody should listen to me”-Joe Rogan
August 31, 2023 @ 10:54 am
May the levees continue to break for those who don’t fit the 16th Ave formula.
Amen.
August 31, 2023 @ 10:56 am
But is the music any good? Just because he sings in that voice and uses very little instrumentation doesn’t mean the songs are deserving of the sort of hype he is generating.
What I’ve heard, and I’ll admit it’s not much, is probably a lot better than anything you’ll hear on the radio but that long ago stopped being the bar.
August 31, 2023 @ 1:01 pm
Oliver Anthony very much comes from the music scene that is epicientered right here, on a site like Saving Country Music. He’s one of us. Three weeks ago, he’d never played a paying gig. He’s an amateur, and says as much himself. Yes, it’s crazy his music went viral, but it happened. The people have spoken, and they like it. Is there better music? Of course. But I just don’t see the need to over-analyze something that was virtually unrehersed, unproduced, and recorded out in the woods with a single mic. Let’s see what develops from here. Time will judge just how good or not Oliver Anthony is.
August 31, 2023 @ 7:49 pm
You’re really saying that’s what his voice sounds like, without any artificial inflection?
August 31, 2023 @ 1:35 pm
Are you sure you didn’t mean to post that on the recent Zach Bryan article? ☺️
August 31, 2023 @ 2:01 pm
Lololol.
September 2, 2023 @ 5:51 pm
Listen, at the end of the day, music is about making a connection. The public doesn’t take points off for a
weak chord vocabulary, using homophone rhymes, or failure to maintain metrical structure. If you move someone, you move them. When you put into words what a bunch of folks are feeling – and get those emotions across musically – there’s a tendency for a bunch of folks to say Amen. I’ve been writing songs for 35 years. I have tunes with dozens of chords, and I write some clever lyrics. I don’t consider myself a great guitarist, but compared to Oliver I’m Danny Gatton. l have songs that took years to finish. None of that gets me one iota closer to the truth than Oliver, and might have put me quite a bit further away. I’ve never even sniffed making a connection with folks the way this kid did, even before the song went completely bananas. Did he get lucky? Sure. Are his influences showing? Damn straight. But, that doesn’t mean the kid can’t write. You can follow every song writing rule, record at Blackbird with the best in business, play like Shawn Camp, and sing like … well, Shawn Camp. If you don’t make a connection, it’s all sound and fury signifying nothing.
August 31, 2023 @ 10:59 am
It isn’t the politics themselves that has me remaining critical of Oliver Anthony. It’s just that his songwriting is very………….amateurish to me.
And don’t get me wrong: I get that’s PRECISELY why many find Anthony endearing: that he is the antithesis of assembly-line, sausage-making formulaic songwriting fodder and Ken-doll branding and marketing image-wise. They adore Anthony because of his DYI approach and kind of helping inspire country music’s Nirvana-esque moment.
Yet at least from what I’ve heard thus far, Anthony’s lyrics just don’t impress me. I certainly don’t believe you HAVE to have a huge economy of words or a master of employing literary devices in order to be a good songwriter. After all, I love the Foo Fighters and I loved Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers for precisely that reason: because even though neither Grohl nor Petty write or wrote particularly deep, poetic songs, they nonetheless never wasted a word in writing honest, down-to-earth, anthemic songs from the heart. But at least so far, Anthony’s songwriting just isn’t impressing me with how it’s laden with non-sequiturs, comes across as much too second draft-ish, etc.
I do respect the guy though for the dignified way he has addressed his critics from both the ideological left and ideological right echo chambers. =)
August 31, 2023 @ 2:38 pm
I think you are right about his songwriting, that or he is lying to play both sides of the aisle. If the line about fudge rounds and welfare was actually supposed to be commentary on food deserts and the options available to poor people, then he royally fucked up the line and his message. There is also no way 30 million people interpreted it correctly and only a few detractors didn’t, interpreting the line to say “people on welfare are lazy” is exactly why conservatives grabbed on to the song and why it became popular.
September 1, 2023 @ 6:17 am
I think he is definitely trying to distance himself from being labeled as a “right-wing musician”.
Which – for him – is just good business sense. If all you do is target conservatives or liberals with your song-writing, there is an obvious economic ceiling you run into.
I don’t know if Oliver Anthony is legit or not in his desire not to become a massive artist, but if he ever decides he DOES want the “6 tour buses” lifestyle, he ain’t gonna get that catering to only one side of American political parties.
I’ll put it this way – John Rich obviously makes enough by apparently now only releasing politically-tinged songs aimed at conservatives, but it pales in comparison to the money he and Big Kenny were making when Big & Rich were still relevant. Hell, if John Rich saw $$$ in only catering to a conservative fan base, he wouldn’t have tried like hell for so long to be a thing as a solo artist and/or extend the Big & Rich arc as long as he did.
That’s not me slamming on Oliver Anthony. I think he has some very deeply held views and should be celebrated for that. But I also think a lot of the work he is doing now by releasing the YouTube video last week, going on Rogan, etc. is an effort to prevent him being pigeonholed as an artists moving forward. Which is just good business sense.
August 31, 2023 @ 3:12 pm
Exactly. I call this the Hootie and the Blowfish effect (blue collar bar band made good) – everyone loves rooting for the underdog, and rightfully so. I appreciate the authenticity and the stripped-downness, but Tom T. Hall this guy ain’t.
August 31, 2023 @ 4:15 pm
Yeah, he really (IMO) needs a co-writer with some experience who can guide him a bit. Not in the sense of making his songs or sound more commercial. Rather in the sense that a lot his songs have a TON of potential, but are occasionally repetitive or a bit clunky.
He has only put out a handful of songs, but it feels like 50% of them include the lyric “New World” somewhere. Just small stuff like that.
I was pretty convinced he was a 15 seconds of fame candidate, but “I Wanna Go Home” sold me that he has a chance to really make an impact past “RMNoR”. As clunky as his lyrics occasionally are, dude makes you feel his lyrics.
September 1, 2023 @ 7:19 am
We need to get this guy at the Open Chord, soon.
August 31, 2023 @ 11:01 am
Nobody will acknowledge it, but the resident Honky who everybody hates on, gets another one correct.
August 31, 2023 @ 11:38 am
I acknowledge it….
August 31, 2023 @ 9:05 pm
Hello Joe,
While I appreciate the “hat tip”, let’s be clear that getting this right was no big deal. I got it right because my ideology is basically, “What is the truth?”. Always wanting to know the truth is inherently right-wing.
Having said that, there are still some things about Mr. Anthony that are being lost in all the conversations about him. When he says he’s not political, he doesn’t mean that he holds no worldview, or doesn’t have a belief system. He simply means that both political parties are corrupt and do not serve the American people, and he’s right. But make no mistake, Oliver Anthony has a political ideology, and it is right-wing. It’s right-wing because it seeks the truth and stands against the tyranny of the corrupt elite. It’s right-wing because he wants to give a sense of worth back to the working man. I’m out in the open as a far-right person, but I reject the “conservative” label, for the same reason Oliver Anthony does: it’s a label that represents the weaker of the two corrupt political parties in our country.
None of this means that Oliver Anthony is completely politically literate yet; it just means his instincts and his apparent desire for God are leading him in the right direction. He’s still a little naive, because he still thinks this country can be put back together. What he doesn’t seem to understand is, that the overwhelming majority of people who support him are already on the same basic side anyway, regardless of what label they’ve given themselves. And that this in no way means that there still isn’t a very large demonic, left-wing contingent of people who oppose him, cheering on the evil in our country, spreading their wicked religion on behalf of the elite they willingly, and in most cases unwittingly serve.
Make no mistake, Oliver Anthony is not someone whose worldview is that of a normie who believes the correct position is always in the middle, or that there must always be a compromise, or that both sides are always to blame.
September 1, 2023 @ 6:10 am
“And then, somehow, it got worse”.
September 1, 2023 @ 10:13 am
How so?
September 1, 2023 @ 1:08 pm
“It’s right-wing because it seeks the truth and stands against the tyranny of the corrupt elite. It’s right-wing because he wants to give a sense of worth back to the working man.”
Lol good one.
August 31, 2023 @ 11:08 am
I knew after the first listen that he was authentic…Hoping hes got folks in his life to help him keep his head on straight re this astronomical rise. Rogan interview was terrific.
August 31, 2023 @ 11:16 am
I strongly disagree with a whole lot of this, but it’s a win for everybody’s auditory processes that Jamey Johnson is gonna be his sherpa.
August 31, 2023 @ 11:37 am
“…Oliver Anthony’s rhetoric has pretty much everyone who initially supported him or steadfastly rebuked him twisted up and second guessing themselves…”
Do you have any substantial examples of this? I feel like a lot of right wingers wouldn’t care that he isn’t right wing himself…and would still appreciative that he’s anti status quo / the political establishment. Many hard right pundits like (to some degree), and respect Bill Maher (Dem), Rogan, (Bernie Supporter), Matt Taibi (left wing), RFK Jr, etc. If you follow Tucker at all you know he’s often anti republican and big business. I’ve been too busy to follow this stuff lately….so I’m wondering if you have any examples of how initial supporters being all “twisted up” by him not turning out to being part of their side of the binary. Or is it just an assumption?
August 31, 2023 @ 1:08 pm
Most of the right wing influencer types who were behind him at the start have mostly been mum on the subject from what I have seen. Though trust me, some of them I’m sure they know they have egg on their face, while other may not care. They’re chasing the next zeitgeist moment and won’t reflect back on what happened. When it comes to those getting “twisted up,” that was more a comment about people who said Anthony was an “industry plant” or what have you who still are refusing to come down off that mountain.
I try to avoid mentioning his name, but let me just say that I’ve had quite a few people reaching out about Tyler Mahan Coe’s tweets about this issue. I wouldn’t expect an apology or clarification any time soon. He’s got a brand to keep.
August 31, 2023 @ 2:36 pm
On the flip side, does Rolling Stone or any of the “left-wingers” who were critical of Anthony have egg on their faces since he has now criticized, and rightly so, right-wingers? Note that Daily Wire has at least 3 articles about political labels that seem to indicate they don’t care so much about Anthony identifying on the right or left as they do that a lot of everyday working people identify with him. See Joe Rogan Reacts To Oliver Anthony Sharing Faith, Reading Bible On Podcast: ‘Pretty F***ing Profound’; Oliver Anthony Addresses People Trying To Politically Label Him; and ‘No One In The Federal Government Is Coming To Save Us’: Oliver Anthony On Family, Self-Reliance.
Same with Redstate. See Oliver Anthony Is a Voice of Reason in Today’s Polarized Partisan World; and Oliver Anthony Is Attacked by Progressives and the GOP Establishment, He Must Be Doing Something Right
August 31, 2023 @ 2:54 pm
“ Note that Daily Wire has at least 3 articles about political labels that seem to indicate they don’t care so much about Anthony identifying on the right or left as they do that a lot of everyday working people identify with him.”
Exactly.
August 31, 2023 @ 2:43 pm
Well it was the media who called this a right wing anthem. I’m not saying there aren’t some looney right wing pundits, some of them who jumped on this. What I am saying is that, in my opinion and observation, right wing pundits and the right wing in general are much more forgiving and even appreciative of independents or people who criticize both “binaries,” than are the left wing is. I do realize this comment goes against the spirit of this article, and I’m not trying to pick a fight or say one is better than the other…just an observation. That’s why I was curious if you’ve seen any of the right wing early supporters actually backtrack or something. I think most of them might actually be ok with his comments on Rogan. But god forbid you say something about 300 lb people on welfare eating fudge rounds….
August 31, 2023 @ 4:03 pm
The “media” called it a “right-wing anthem” because literally every conservative influencer/media outlet slobbered over it.
Or are you just going to ignore that the people pushing the song the hardest at the very start were divisive figures like Matt Walsh/John Rich/Daily Wire/Glenn Beck/Fox & Friends, etc.?
It got that label because those outlets were pushing the song incredibly hard. Hell, Fox News (stupidly) took time out of a Presidential primary debate to ask about the song.
I absolutely think the left was wrong to assume Anthony was a plant or not legit, but I don’t know how you can seriously act like the media branding it a right-wing song when every right-winger under the sun was clutching the song and proclaiming it one of their own.
August 31, 2023 @ 4:34 pm
“I’m not saying there aren’t some looney right wing pundits, some of them who jumped on this”
Did you miss that part of my comment? Show me where any of the outlets pushed back on the idea that the song was right wing and the pundits were getting it wrong. Many of them including the Washington post accused it of “mainstreaming conspiracy theories.” How did that shake out? Are you “just going to ignore that?” I’m saying they bought into it being right wing. I’m still wondering why being anti-Epstein is a conspiracy theory….and right wing.
August 31, 2023 @ 9:18 pm
….”were divisive figures like Matt Walsh/John Rich/Daily Wire/Glenn Beck”….
Mike W,
Calling someone like Matt Walsh “divisive” implies he has created a division, which is objectively false. Our country already has a natural division, as is normal; evil will always be divided from good. All Matt Walsh has done is acknowledge that division exists and that it must exist, and chose to spend his life as a public figure, fighting for the side of good.
Less children will be given life-altering surgeries and drugs, thanks to the work Matt Walsh has done.
September 1, 2023 @ 6:19 am
Keep drinking that Kool-Aid that any of these folks give a crap about the stuff they say they do Honky.
Wake me up when Matt Walsh is actually doing something to improve the world around him, rather than tweet 50 times an hour.
September 1, 2023 @ 10:31 am
Mike W,
So, you’ve moved from, “Matt Walsh is divisive” to “Ok fine, Matt Walsh isn’t divisive, but he’s a grifter who just takes a side to make money.”
For Matt Walsh to be a grifter, the following things would need to be true.
1. Matt Walsh cares more about grifting than he does about his own physical safety and the physical safety of his wife and six children.
2. Matt Walsh only pretends to care about the well-being of children in order to make money off the people who really care about the well-being of children, when in reality, he at the very best is indifferent about the drugging and mutilation of children and at the worst secretly hopes for it to happen.
3. Matt Walsh is such a devoted grifter, that he invests time speaking in front of congressional hearings regarding the drugging and mutilation of kids, simply to make the grift seem as believable as possible.
4. Matt Walsh, who is very obviously a misanthropic introvert, denies himself the indulgence of his own nature, simply to grift, by giving lectures on college campuses and in front of school boards and political rallies.
5. Matt Walsh, who is inarguably a skilled orator, would prefer to take the path of most resistance for his grift, even within his own “side” at times, than to use his oratory skills to live a quiet life of comfort by grifting on the path of least resistance.
August 31, 2023 @ 4:55 pm
Matt Walsh seemed somewhat dumbfounded by Anthony’s stance. Walsh wanted a ‘thank-you’ for providing a platform and sounds like Anthony isn’t interested…
August 31, 2023 @ 7:04 pm
Anthony isn’t getting jack for Hanukkah this year then
August 31, 2023 @ 11:39 am
I’m still not convinced the Oliver Anthony phenomenon has legs. You can only sing so many songs about how your life sucks or how lousy your job/pay is or how you like to get high. Maybe Johnson’s influence will help.
Next time, maybe he’ll point out that his lousy job with “bullshit pay” has everything to do with his employer and zero to do with some government official north of Richmond. The conservatives who embraced him lap up anything criticizing government. If Anthony had criticized the company that rewards him with “bullshit” pay, we would’ve heard crickets.
More and more, it almost seems like his “fudge rounds” verse was something he and his buddies came up with playing around a campfire after a day of drinking. They’re making up the song as they go and somebody threw out the line, “If you’re 5-foot-3 and you’re 300 pounds” line then everybody laughed and somebody added, “Taxes ought not to pay for your bags of fudge rounds” and they all had a good laugh and knew it would never wind up in the “final” song. And then it did. Absent that bit of punching down, it’s a pretty somber tale.
August 31, 2023 @ 12:26 pm
In a way, at least what I’ve heard from Oliver Anthony thus far reminds me of Ani DiFranco (remember her?) and all the hype that used to surround her in indie circles.
They obviously have glaring differences especially in terms of audience, but the reason I bring her up is that her sound overall was quite DIY, stripped-down to the point it was compatible for coffee shop open mics, and her lyrics are either praised or panned depending on one’s perspective for how unedited and unrefined they are and frequently reference social issues in a non-sequitur format.
September 2, 2023 @ 7:56 am
Id like to know if the sales of Fudge rounds has skyrocketed after this “song”. I never heard of them. then I looked them up and they look delicious. Chocolate cookies with rich chewy fudge in between.
Its my guess Little Debbie is cashing in big time on him mentioning this delicious snack.
August 31, 2023 @ 12:00 pm
It was absurd to watch Fox begin the presidential debate by playing “Rich Men North of Richmond” and then asking the candidates about the song. Mind you, these are candidates that are mostly very wealthy and mostly running to audition for future jobs on TV or in Washington (few, if any, have a chance at getting the nomination).
How many Harvard and Yale degrees were on that stage? How many of the nominees have already made their millions? Who there could ever relate to what OA is singing about?
For the record, I think it’s a good thing when smart and successful people go into politics. And I think many career politicians, even if wealthy, mean well and do care. But it was like the joke flew right over Fox’s head.
August 31, 2023 @ 6:59 pm
The only people taking Fox News seriously are the most pedestrian of conservatives.
August 31, 2023 @ 12:25 pm
The thing that surprised me is how intelligent and self aware this guy sounds.
August 31, 2023 @ 12:47 pm
I think a lot of people knee jerked to an opinion without really listening very closely because those things are evident in his music.
August 31, 2023 @ 1:13 pm
Not every Joe Rogan interview is built the same. It was Sturgill Simpson’s first appearance on Rogan that helped shoot his music into the stratosphere. I doubt Chris Stapleton or Zach Bryan even saw a bump. But with the way Oliver Anthony comported himself, I think he will win quite a few new fans, and it will help keep his momentum going past when “Rich Men” fades from the charts, which it will do.
August 31, 2023 @ 7:31 pm
The Zach Bryan interview was one of the worse JRE interviews I have heard.
August 31, 2023 @ 12:36 pm
Rogan and Anthony….two god fearin’, gun totin’ patriots right there!
August 31, 2023 @ 12:40 pm
Though I’ve been dismissive of Anthony and this song on here, I was not one who accused him of being a right wing plant. That said, his recent clarifying comments have changed my opinion of him for the better. very clear he is in it for the right reasons and is honest about how he arrives at his conclusions in a very intelligent way.
His talent is still evolving, perhaps the fudge rounds line is indicative of him needing a little more time to hone his craft before getting this attention but thats alright, no artist is ever “fully formed” out of the gate, especially not the great ones. (now that I know his meaning, I don’t bemoan the fact that line is in there, but its also easy to see how he could have avoided the misinterpretation with a little more nuance)
I will still take a little umbrage at Trig for lumping in his critics the same way as Aldean’s…there is little nuance or subtlety about what Aldean was doing in that song and especially that video and while the critics may have fueled the popularity, it also was very much fair game for criticizing given the history of that courthouse and the misrepresentation of small towns and cities perceived safety in a way that can only be read along racial lines.
I’m a bit more forgiving of Wallen’s misdeeds in general (though his music is still bro-ish crap), but again if people were buying his music BECAUSE of what he said, that still remains problematic even if Wallen himself didnt deserve full cancellation once it was clear he apologized and followed through on his promises to meet with black leaders and donate money to charity (and you’ve done great work Trig in confirming that those donations did indeed happen).
In conclusion, I guess my point is that these 3 singers are frequently getting lumped in together as being icons of some sort of populist backlash, but what Anthony is singing about vs. what led Aldean and Wallen to get in trouble are not really alike in any way.
August 31, 2023 @ 1:19 pm
For the record, the comparison between Oliver Anthony, Jason Aldean, and Morgan Wallen was how the backlash helped fuel their ascent as opposed to hurting it. Creatively and morally, there are much bigger differences between all three instances.
And for the record, I do think that Aldean should have apologized or been more contrite about the controversy concerning the video location. But I still don’t think it was on purpose, or that he had any clue about it. That was on the producers of the video, TackleBox, who probably didn’t know the history of the courthouse either. After all, this is Jason Aldean we’re talking about. These are not the sharpest knives in the drawer. Better to just criticize it for being a bad song and move on. If that’s what had been done, it would have never shot to #1 like that.
September 1, 2023 @ 7:30 am
We will have to agree to disagree on Aldean. Even if it was an unforced error like you contend, his team has done nothing to dispel that interpretation which is just as bad as if they had done it on purpose.
September 1, 2023 @ 12:21 pm
I respectfully challenge you to stretch yourself sometime this weekend, if you can carve out 30 or so minutes to relax and have some peaceful time.
Think about all of the blood that has been spilled on American soil.
Think about all of the Indians maimed and slaughtered, murdered with smallpox, etc.
ESPECIALLY, the Indians, who have had millions of acres stolen.
Uprooted from ancestral grounds and rich fertile lands.
The ones not outright murdered, gifted with very barren land, marshy terrain, to scratch survival out of. Or had life sustaining waters diverted from our grounds.
In recent centuries, we have been the most hated of the people’s occupying this country.
If you want to take a stand, then take one. For all the people who have been wronged in the name of hate and greed.
You will have to look far and wide where any music video has a “right” to be filmed.
September 2, 2023 @ 8:04 am
The Indians were constantly fighting amongst themselves. The tribes were vicious to one another. You believe in a fairy tale of the noble peaceful Indian. Also many Indians were nomadic and didn’t use land for farming!
If you really want to do something ( instead of just virtue signal). , how about give your home up to a needy Indian family on a reservation and move back to Europe?
September 2, 2023 @ 9:43 am
This is completely off topic. Please keep the discussion to the topic at hand, and avoid divisive subjects.
Thanks.
August 31, 2023 @ 2:47 pm
Yeah, I’m giving him the benefit of the doubt too that the amateur-ish lyricism is more indicative of him just starting to write music in 2021 and still developing his songwriting acumen.
I mean, John Mellencamp’s songwriting was terrible, absolutely dreadful when he started out. His lyrics were embarrassingly juvenile half of the time, and devoid of self-awareness. Yet, to his credit, his songwriting incrementally got better and better with each successive album likely in part because he took the critiques to heart and strived to do better. I’m holding hope Anthony will do the same.
August 31, 2023 @ 6:18 pm
“I mean, John Mellencamp’s songwriting was terrible, absolutely dreadful when he started out. His lyrics were embarrassingly juvenile half of the time, and devoid of self-awareness.”
Great comment. This should be posted on all Zach Bryan articles, as well. It seems shoddy songwriting is popular these days. Anthony, like Bryan, needs serious time in the woodshed learning the craft. These songs that sound like they were written by guys with shallow musical roots, and come across as half finished, won’t have any longterm staying power. Five years from now these songs will be a faint memory as the trend jumpers glom onto the next ‘viral’ sensation. I do love these kinds of stories, though, it proves that music doesn’t have to perfect to be enjoyed.
September 1, 2023 @ 7:21 am
Great point on Mellencamp…even his first hit “I Need a Lover” from ’79 gets by way more on the power of the band behind him than the really hamfisted lyrics. “Ain’t Even Done With the Night” from ’81 showed what he was capable of, but it wasn’t until Uh-Huh (’83) and Scarecrow (’85) that he emerged as a formidable talent capable of writing whole albums worth of great material.
September 1, 2023 @ 8:32 am
I Need A Lover, would have been nothing without Mellencamp’s voice.
Mellencamp is a great talent.
He might be a prick, but he has the talent.
Cracks me up when people try to pigeonhole him as a bumpkin.
The man is intelligent to the extreme.
September 1, 2023 @ 9:26 am
Yeah, I was wrong for not mentioning his qualities as a singer on that song. Just trying to underscore the point that in ’79 you would be forgiven for thinking that he would never go on to make albums like Scarecrow and Lonesome Jubilee.
September 1, 2023 @ 12:04 pm
@Lake Erie.
I agree
August 31, 2023 @ 12:44 pm
I don’t know. I’m not sure in the history of the world that anyone has gotten more press over a at best average song. I guess he got his five minutes of fame. I won’t bother reading about this stuff til he’s actually done something with it.
August 31, 2023 @ 1:02 pm
What a lot of commentators don’t appear to understand is that for many of us our view of politics is “meet the new boss, same as the old boss”. We see these “leaders” come and go, but the circumstances of our lives don’t change very much. Gibbering at us about how the GDP went up by 0.000001% is just white noise.
I get accused of being a fascist MAGA person one second and a commie the next, simply depending on who I’m talking to. Their Manichean worldview can’t accommodate the notion of someone who isn’t a member of the Red Team or the Blue Team.
August 31, 2023 @ 3:37 pm
You “eschew the media binary” by playing the game. Many are sick of the influencer powered sewage on social media on don’t bother with it. Social media got you out there, but now you’re the darling of conventional media, embrace it (and reach is) by appearing on as many regular outlets as possible, FOX and NPR included. Will help with giving “cred” as your neutrality you imply
Now that OA is here, I hope he does whatever he needs to do to retain his masters and all IP rights. You’re not in the sticks anymore. Entertainment “politics” is toxic.
Love the jealousy. #1 without “lifted trucks, $1000 dollar daisy dukes, beer or courthouses”. Sorry Jason…
Don’t agree with the portrayal but identify with alot of the message. Tired of “God-fearing Fascist Moms of Patriot Stockholders” vs “Border Free Limousine Liberals Worried About Drinking Straws” feuding over BS while middle abd working class can’t buy groceries cuz we’re fitting the bill.
OA, the beard heard round the world…
August 31, 2023 @ 5:10 pm
So two of the things this guy hates the most (internet, social media) are the very things that are now changing his financial situation from “bullshit pay” to hundreds of thousands of dollars. Is his dollar still worth shit? I don’t care how much someone claims they’re average Joe, ain’t nothin average about this meteoric rise. He may have been average Joe before this summer, and I’m not criticizing him, I think he’s great and I’m genuinely happy for him, but I agree with a previous comment in the vein of how long can he sustain that kind of message when he’s raking it in?
August 31, 2023 @ 5:42 pm
So Happy for Oliver Anthony to get to know Jamey Johnson, and the give & take both will have with each other.
I think it is Fantastic
August 31, 2023 @ 5:44 pm
That was one of the asinine and plain brain dead stringing of letters in incoherent fashion I have ever come across. Kudos
August 31, 2023 @ 6:19 pm
I’m happy Oliver Anthony. Glad he has Jamie Johnson to seek advice from. He’s conviced me that he is the real deal, and I wish him the best of luck!!
August 31, 2023 @ 6:43 pm
He seems like an intelligent guy and I’m sure he knows this already but I’d caution him to use the money he’s making now wisely and keep some of it back for a rainy day. He’s smart enough to realize that many of the people who made RMNOR a hit were only interested in the culture war aspect and may not stick around when he writes about other topics. He’s also at a disadvantage compared to others whose success came less rapidly, people like Tyler Childers who spent years on the road honing their craft and building their audience and who still has a back catalog of fan favorites he’s yet to release on an album. People are willing to pay good money to see Tyler even if they won’t hear White House Road, but will they pay to see Oliver Anthony a year or two from now? He should go on tour with Jamey Johnson. It would probably be good for both of them. I guess what I’m trying to say is that there are lots of one-hit wonders from decades past struggling to pay their rent today. Hopefully he’ll be relevant for a long time to come and I think he can be… But he probably shouldn’t go out and buy a Maserati just yet.
August 31, 2023 @ 7:02 pm
I loved the Dukes of Hazzard growing up. It’s hard to understate how freaking influential the it was, even in syndication.
August 31, 2023 @ 9:16 pm
if you look at the original video and the guy doing the one from the front seat of the Model T it isn’t the same guy. they have already replaced him like they did Paul McCartney with Faul
Fauxliver Anthony
August 31, 2023 @ 9:32 pm
5+ points for this comment.
August 31, 2023 @ 9:21 pm
This whole thing with Oliver just cracks me up. The lap dogs and sheep who dutifully embraced or vilified this guy never understood this guy from the start. His song was political, but A- Political. It was never about left or right.
I’ve been saying all along on these posts that this guy was not trying to make an anti-left or pro-right statement. This song is about how the average guy is struggling to make a living, run a business, buy a home, or provide for a family under a broken and corrupt government.
It’s funny to watch the politicians and their extreme supporters realize it’s not about them, but at the same time, about them all.
September 1, 2023 @ 10:50 am
Hey Scott,
No hate here. I just feel like things are being missed or lost in translation. Calling the song, “A-political”, or “non-political”, lends itself to a shallow understanding of what it means to be “political” in the context of a song like this or a time in history like right now.
People use left and right almost interchangeably with Democrat and Republican, and when used that way, as a party label, then it’s true that the song is not political.
But the song takes very clear positions and draws very clear lines on things. It IS political to acknowledge the reality of child sex trafficking and pedophilia by the elites. And It would require political power and influence to put a stop to it.
Additionally, politics are why tax dollars go to fund proxy wars and welfare programs intended to keep people unhealthy and dependent on government. It would take political power to change those things too.
Oliver Anthony has political beliefs. I suspect his goal though, is just to rally people together without putting labels on it, because labels are hard for most people to consume and understand. But this is absolutely a right-wing movement in nature and spirit, against the tyranny of a left-wing global elite.
“I’m not political.” is usually the rallying cry of the normie weaklings of the world who don’t have a spine to stand for anything but the zeitgeist. That is not what Oliver Anthony is doing here.
September 1, 2023 @ 11:35 am
I understand what you’re saying. It’s why I said it is a political song. I said that it’s A-Political because I don’t think his message was meant to be an endorsement of a republican message, or indictment of the democrat message. I believe his message is a directed at government as a whole.
Since small government and anti-regulation are republican platforms, he was embraced by the right. And since the left views the government as the savior of all their problems, he was vilified by them. But I think the point of his song was that the government itself has become blind to the everyday plight of regular guys like him, not to be another soapbox spokesman endorsing any political party.
I do agree though that a majority of his views are what would be considered right leaning whether he wants to take that stand or not. With his new found fame and undoubtedly new found friends wanting to guide him, I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s being encouraged to soften his public stance.
August 31, 2023 @ 11:16 pm
What bothers me about what Anthony said is that no one would even know who he is without the right wing people he is so “aggravated” by. How many people watched his YouTube videos before these same aggravating people brought him to everyone’s attention? And maybe he doesn’t care about the attention (although I’m pretty sure he does). Like Matt (gasp!) Walsh said, a little gratitude would go a long way.
September 1, 2023 @ 7:27 am
The guy doesnt owe anyone anything. His comments remind me of how Kurt Cobain felt when suddenly the same types of people who made his life hell bullying him as a kid were the ones in the front rows of his concerts. He had a very clear message to those people (look it up, you probably wont like it) and Anthony’s response is rather tame in comparison but make no mistake he’s coming from the same place (must be those Southern manners!)
September 1, 2023 @ 2:40 am
My trouble with the whole Oliver Anthony thing is — no matter how many times I listen to it, the song just never gets stuck in my head. Sounds like a vague, forgettable melody. Or am I missing something?
September 1, 2023 @ 7:02 am
Hmmmm.America spends $816,000,000,000 on “defense” (read:”War”),a pittance on aiding the indigent (well,MUCH more “helping them into privately-run prisons),and O.A. writes about keeping the poor poor without mentioning how working-class men’s wages have stagnated for nearly a half-century while CEOs make (at least) 500 times their employees’ salaries/wages.
How ’bout working THOSE facts into your next song,Oliie,buddy ???????
September 1, 2023 @ 11:32 am
Oliver Anthony is apolitical in the same way conservative talk radio is apolitical. In other words, he isn’t. Conservative talk radio exists because businesses, who buy the ads, dislike any sort of government regulation or accountability. They want somebody to talk incessantly about how “big government” (although they include local and state government) is strangling them. Since the radio stations are often big businesses too, they happily provide the platform.
Conversely, when your business model is to broadcast shows in which hosts discuss corporations running roughshod over people and government trying to regulate the businesses, advertisers stay away. The shows have pretty short lifespans. It’s all pretty simple.
Anthony’s alleged authenticity aside, the conservative pundits who glommed on to him did so solely because he blamed some ambiguous government and people *he* considers undeserving of assistance, characterized by the fat and lazy poor. If he had inserted a verse about how his employer’s CEO was raking it in while paying him and his coworkers “bullshit pay,” then those same pundits would have ignored him and his YouTube videos would have maybe a couple of hundred views, at best. He’s not getting by on his songwriting or musicianship.
He knew he was lighting a fuse on something political. He just didn’t know how big the explosion would be. Only the most naive person would fail to know who would favor his lyrics and who would complain about them. And by lumping all politicians together, he is rejecting some people who are earnestly trying to help him.
I’m even willing to bet he’s anti-union, and the union movement has been one of the few forces that has historically and successfully fought to raise wages above the “bullshit pay” level.
September 1, 2023 @ 3:12 pm
“then those same pundits would have ignored him and his YouTube videos would have maybe a couple of hundred views, at best.”
I respectfully disagree. We have seen many of these kinds of YouTube performances go viral in the past, and I published an article illustrating this. Logan Halstead had “Dark Black Coal” go viral through the same exact YouTube channel RadioWV 2 1/2 years ago. The video was going viral before the political folks got involved. They’re the ones who sent it to the next level and #1 on the charts, but the video had momentum behind it before that. Who knows where it would be if not for the political folks getting involved. But it wouldn’t be a couple hundred views. RadioWV already had a huge following before Oliver Anthony came along.
September 2, 2023 @ 4:57 am
I’ll grant you I was low-balling it with the “couple of hundred views” comment. But your phrase about what sent his song(s) to “the next level” is key here. The Oliver Anthony phenomenon has re-defined the meaning of “viral” and re-calibrated the scale for what might be considered viral. His song has been inflated and injected into the national discussion; heck, a major TV network even played it at the start of a televised debate of presidential hopefuls. None of that would’ve happened without a major push from conservative pundits. Songwriters have been singing about the same issues for decades, yet Anthony is the guy the conservative pundits latch onto because he blames government for his problems. They’ve long been looking for a rightwing Woody Guthrie and think they found one.
Here’s a song about many of the same issues — namely low-paying, low-wage jobs in rural America — but it doesn’t punch down. Let’s make it go viral! https://youtu.be/80O8Mk-UhuA?si=vabYwkXWb2Bwjm9s
September 1, 2023 @ 7:09 am
The only thing I’ll say is that “& the Fudge Rounders” would be a great name for a backup band.
September 1, 2023 @ 7:49 am
Hope this clowns 15 minutes of fame are over soon. Hes a big phony now he is selling cheap hats at 30 dollars a piece and raking in 40 grand a day but still wears carharrt to play the role.
Plus he runs down the middle claiming he isn’t republican. or democrat just so he can rake in more money.
September 1, 2023 @ 9:33 am
So his story of drug addiction and suicidal tendencies was ‘a big phony’ story?
There are dozens of ‘phony’ artists in the Nashville machine that are cashing in and you have a problem with this guy getting paid?
September 1, 2023 @ 12:08 pm
When the song went viral, followed shortly by extremists trying to impugn motives, I avoided the song. Did not listen to it with so much vitriol being slung.
Finally listened to the song today, just for lyrics, the structure, his voice. I liked it. He has a very strong voice. I’m not rushing out to buy the album or anything, but it’s an enjoyable listen. Not really sure what all the fuss is about. Sometimes a song is a song is a song…
September 1, 2023 @ 1:33 pm
Anthony Oliver and those that think like him are woefully confused.
Unfortunately for him and allies our “political binary” is baked into the system itself and nothing short of fundamental election reform, namely proportionate electoral representation, will change that. Winner-take-all election will always result in two-party systems, it’s literally a law of politics.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duverger%27s_law
And even if changed, multi-party systems tend to yield two broad coalitions themselves–with smaller parties coalescing ideologically under one umbrella to oppose the other. If smaller parties don’t join they find themselves on the outside looking in– powerless and ineffectual, and in that case, what’s the purpose of their existence?
To “not have the political binary” is to surrender to the status quo, which he, and people like him, claim they hate. You can either engage in our imperfect politics to maximize best outcomes for everyday people or you can sit on the sideline crowing and remaining “pure” because you just “hate it all.” But if you choose the latter you choose continued shit wages.
There’s no way around engaging in the system if you want to improve it or make wages higher. To have to weigh two “bad choices” and pick the better one is sometimes what the world gives you. It’s deeply confused to think that just not choosing and pointing out “well this sucks” is somehow virtuous. This is a real world adult truth.
September 1, 2023 @ 2:46 pm
Say what you will but this dude has been comment section gold.
September 2, 2023 @ 2:41 pm
Yeah, after hearing him talk, it’s nice to know he’s not some reactionary “talking points” asshole trolling for attention, but a pretty normal, thoughtful guy.
September 3, 2023 @ 3:05 pm
Joe Rogan eschews the political binary? Since when?
September 5, 2023 @ 7:20 am
So it sounds like adolescent kids in Richmond need welfare, but welfare just makes needy people dependent, and it’s the fault of the war in Ukraine, but maybe Joe Rogan could get to the truth of the matter, or we could just pray on it. Clearly apolitical.
September 9, 2023 @ 5:58 am
Couldn’t even listen to the whole song it’s so CRINGE…but I did read the lyrics. I hate affectation in music…overly emotional dramatics as in Garth Brooks…faked accents etc…obviously this oliver anthony is not a great musician….his short cropped hair and ridiculous red hipster beard just screams PHONY! LOVE real country music and hate politicians as much the next person…and it was ironic that ron de sanctus of all people decided to co-opt this little ditty. This guy lives with 3 dogs on a piece of land…just too cliche…no g/f no wife no kids…no military service…but he wants to lecture us about this “damned country.” He’s a kid…and an amateur…and needs to hone those songwriting and musical skills…Americans are way too easily impressed and most music today sucks anyway….Hank JR and Charlie Daniels and many others sang it much better..Oliver Anthony is hipster thru and thru and probably hates America. For being a farm boy that hair and beard look awfully coiffed. Big thumbs down on anthony oliver.
September 20, 2023 @ 10:23 pm
The reason people resonate with Oliver Anthony’s music is probably not so much the message, political or otherwise, but it is because of the way he sings. I haven’t heard a new country singer sing with this much soul and conviction in a long time. Lyrics or number of chords don’t matter as much here, it’s the soul behind the singing. I admit I was a bit slow to warm up to him but after hearing some of his other songs on YouTube, I’m totally sold. I dare you to listen to his song “Hell on Earth” on YouTube and tell me this guy is not a total bad-ass. I’m a big fan now and look forward to hearing more from Oliver Anthony.