Oliver Anthony reacts to "Rich Men North Of Richmond"'s GOP debate moment
"I wrote that song about those people," Anthony said with a laugh in a recent video
Oliver Anthony’s “Rich Men North Of Richmond” is the certifiable song of the summer at this point, as audiences around the country jam out to the Billboard Hot 100 topper’s toe-tapping blend of acoustic guitar playing, mixed with vocals from a guy very angrily singing about how much he doesn’t like welfare.
But “Rich Men” isn’t just a heart-pumping dancefloor banger: It’s also a cultural touchstone, something that became clear at the recent GOP debates, when the song became core to the first question asked of the various would-be candidates. Now, Anthony has weighed in on this latest brush with political relevance, stating with a rueful laugh in a recent video that, “I wrote those song about those people.”
In said video, Anthony—whose song, when you break it down, is mostly about taxes, how he doesn’t want to pay them, and how they shouldn’t be spent on “the obese milkin’ welfare”—reasserts what he’s said before, that he considers himself “dead center” when it comes to politics, and is annoyed that the song has been adopted by right-wing figures. “That song has nothing to do with Joe Biden,” he added with a laugh. “It’s a lot bigger.”
Now, it’s not entirely hard to see why “Rich Men” has gotten the reception it has from conservative types—unfairly demonizing welfare as the domain of lazy scammers is a tried-and-tested element of the Republican playbook stretching back for decades at this point, and the line about “minors on islands” dovetails nicely with some of the American right’s favorite obsessions. Still, it’s interesting to see Anthony reject the labels (and, presumably, some very lucrative offers and opportunities that accompany them), refusing to be a poster child for that particular set of beliefs.