Oliver Anthony, the person with the present #1 music in America, doesn’t appear particularly comfy serving as a human cudgel for right-wing political varieties. Anthony’s “Wealthy Males North Of Richmond,” a lo-fi nation ramble with some risible and incoherent politics, took off after right-wing influencers hyped the music up on Twitter, “Wealthy Males North Of Richmond” grew to become a viral sensation and debuted at #1, totally on paid downloads. Now, the music is a political speaking level, and Oliver doesn’t wish to characterize the perspective of the people who find themselves placing him ahead as a voice of the widespread man.

On Wednesday night time, the non-Donald Trump candidates within the Republican presidential major gathered for his or her first debate, and the primary query that moderator Martha MacCallum requested was about “Wealthy Males North Of Richmond.” MacCallum bought an enormous applause break when she talked about the music, and she or he requested Florida governor Ron DeSantis why it’s “hanging such a nerve on this nation proper now.” DeSantis ranted a bit about Joe Biden and a rustic in decline, and he added. “We additionally can not succeed when the Congress spends trillions and trillions of {dollars}! These wealthy males north of Richmond have put us on this scenario!”

A couple of days in the past, Oliver Anthony gave his first interview for the reason that success of “Wealthy Males North Of Richmond” to Fox Information, and he stated some constructive issues concerning the concept of variety. Within the course of, he angered loads of racists. Two weeks in the past, in an introductory video posted on YouTube shortly after “Wealthy Males North Of Richmond,” Anthony described himself as being within the political heart. Immediately, Anthony posted a video that’s labelled as a sequel to that introductory video. He’s sitting in what seems to be the entrance of a pickup truck, and you’ll hear rain drumming down on the roof. (I assume it rained in Farmville at present. It’s been clear skies in Charlottesville.) Over the course of 10 minutes, Anthony addressed the response to his music and its use within the Republican debate.

Anthony began the video by claiming that he wasn’t attempting to advocate a specific political viewpoint:

The one factor that has bothered me is seeing individuals wrap politics up into this. I’m disenchanted to see — like, it’s aggravating seeing individuals on conservative information attempt to determine with me, like I’m considered one of them. It’s aggravating seeing sure musicians and politicians act like we’re buddies and act like we’re preventing the identical wrestle right here, like we’re attempting to current the identical message.

Anthony then talked about his music being a speaking level within the presidential debate, particularly saying that he wrote the music concerning the politicians on that stage and about others like them. He additionally says that the music is connecting with individuals throughout the political spectrum, and never simply in America:

It was humorous seeing my music on the presidential debate. As a result of it’s like, I wrote that music about these individuals, you realize? So for them to have to take a seat there and take heed to that, that cracks me up. But it surely was humorous kinda seeing the response to it. That music has nothing to do with Joe Biden! It’s loads larger than Joe Biden. That music was written concerning the individuals on that stage, and much more, too — not simply them, however undoubtedly them.

It’s cool seeing a few of my different music come out as a result of persons are, I assume, beginning to admire and perceive what I’m attempting to say. It’s arduous to get a message out about your political ideology or your perception concerning the world in three minutes and a few change. However I do hate to see that music being weaponized. Like, I see the proper attempting to characterize me as considered one of their very own, and I see the left attempting to discredit me, I assume, in retaliation. That shit’s gotta cease.

In the event you watch the response movies on YouTube to this music, it’s not conservative individuals responding to this music. It’s not even essentially Individuals responding to this music. I don’t know that I’ve seen something get such constructive response from such a various group of individuals, and I feel that terrifies the those who I sing about in that music. They usually’ve carried out every little thing they will, the final two weeks, to make me seem like a idiot, to spin my phrases, to attempt to stick me in a political bucket. They usually can preserve attempting, however I’m simply gonna carry on writing.

Anthony goes on to handle “the left” and the concept “Wealthy Males North Of Richmond” is “an assault in opposition to the poor.” On the music, Anthony sing about “milkin’ welfare” and about fats individuals utilizing authorities checks to purchase Fudge Rounds. Within the video, Anthony insists that he’s on the facet of the poor, and he quotes the lyrics of his music “Doggon It“:

Since I’ve addressed the conservatives, I do want to handle the left as nicely. As a result of they’re sending the message out that that preliminary music that kind of shot me up the radar, “Wealthy Males North Of Richmond,” is an assault in opposition to the poor. In the event you take heed to my different music, it’s apparent that every one of my songs that tackle class defend the poor. “Doggon It” is an efficient instance of that: “Needles on the street, of us hardly surviving on sidewalks subsequent to sidewalks stuffed with vehicles, self-drivin’. The poor preserve hurtin’, and the wealthy preserve thrivin’.” That’s what I prefer to sing about.

Anthony additionally talks about studying an article about children in Richmond who’re on welfare and who should subsist on college lunch as a result of there’s not sufficient meals at residence, and he says that loads of EBT funds go towards snack meals. He continues, “Welfare solely makes up a small share of our finances, you realize? We will gasoline a proxy struggle in a overseas land, however we are able to’t maintain our personal. That’s all of the music’s attempting to say.” It’s not what the music does say, however I admire the clarification.

You’ll be able to watch the video under.