PG Music Home Forums General Discussion Best of YouTube Oliver Anthony - Rich Men North Of Richmond

..It comes from a realm beyond politics...

...rather than looking at it as simple politics, taking this side or that side, like supporting different football teams ?
It goes back to the guy dying, the media can't help him, politicians can't help him, Dr Fauci certainly can't help him, he has to look deeper because he is forced to, he has not got the luxury to say she'll be right mate I will still go to work tomorrow and get paid, I can go to parties with friends, I can still eat normally, I can still walk normally, I can still breath normally...

..but this is all beyond politics what's happening now and goes into spiritual things...

I do hate to see that song
being weaponized like I see I see the
right trying to characterize me as one
of their own and I see the left trying
to
um trying to discredit me I guess in
retaliation
uh that sh!t's gotta stop

I do feel compelled to address something
since I have addressed the conservatives
I do need to address the left as well
because they're sending a message out
that that that initial song that sort of
shot me up the radar Richmond north of
Richmond is is an attack against the
poor..

well hey there
it's August 25th 2023
A lot's changed since the last time I
sat here and spoke to you
um my friends and family have asked me
how I'm doing everybody is wondering if
I'm uh if I've lost my sanity yet and
I'm surprisingly calm and at peace
I've
I don't even know what to say but I I
feel thankful to be given this
opportunity
um
you know the music side is exciting and
all the billboard iTunes charts and all
that crap that's great but uh which
the exciting part's been the
conversations I've had with people
and the things I've learned just in a
couple weeks about
um
about the human spirit
and and
about all sorts of other things the
music industry and
and how how dirty everything is like
it's it's worse than you think
so I don't know what the future looks
like for me
I'm not really too concerned about the
future I'm living in the present
and I'm
I just have to have I just have to have
the discernment
to make the right decisions from here on
out because
um
I think about that guy who was sitting
here a few weeks ago talking to you and
uh
uh the most important thing and the most
important thing to me is not leaving him
behind
I don't want to go on some roller
coaster ride and come off a different
person
uh
if there is anything for me to address
at all with you it's that uh
uh you know it's
the one thing that has bothered me
is seeing people rap politics up into
this
uh
I'm disappointed to see
like 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 and act like we're fighting
the same struggle here like that we're
trying to present the same message
you know I've had a lot of people reach
out to me and I tried to be polite to
everybody and
um 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 to maybe
make them their own selves relevant and
that's aggravating as hell the other
thing that I find aggravating is uh
well you know like it was funny seeing
my song in the
it was fun it was funny seeing it at the
presidential debate
because it's like 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
uh but it was funny kind of seeing the
response to it like that song has
nothing to do with Joe Biden you know
it's a lot bigger than Joe Biden
um
that song is written about the people on
the on that stage and a lot more too not
just them but but definitely them
it's cool seeing some of my other music
come out because people are I guess
starting to appreciate and understand
what it is I'm really trying to say it's
hard to get a message out about about
your political ideology or your belief
about the world in three minutes and
some change
um
but I hate I do hate to see that song
being weaponized like I see I see the
right trying to characterize me as one
of their own and I see the left trying
to
um trying to discredit me I guess in
retaliation
uh that sh!t'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
um 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 the
last two weeks to make me look like a
fool
to spend my words
to try to stick me in a political bucket
and they can keep trying but I'm just
going to keep on writing
and I've got a lot of words to put down
on paper and I've got I've got a lot of
songs
to put the chords and um
I don't know what my music career is
going to look like I don't know how many
shows I'm gonna do and how many tours
I'm gonna put on but
I am going to stay true to my word I'm
I'm gonna write
I'm going to write produce
and distribute authentic music that
represents people
and not politics
I do feel compelled to address something
since I have addressed the conservatives
I do need to address the left as well
because they're sending a message out
that that that initial song that sort of
shot me up the radar Richmond north of
Richmond is is an attack against the
poor
if you listen to my other music it's
obvious that all of my songs that
reference class defend the poor uh dog
on it's a good example of that needles
in the street folks hardly surviving on
sidewalks next to highways full of cars
self-driving the poor keep hurting in
the rich keep thriving
it's like that's what I like to sing
about
and you know the English language is
interpretive and so I do understand like
there may be some people who
who misunderstood my words in Richmond
north of Richmond
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 and
you know the words say that there's
people on the street with nothing to eat
in the obese milk and Welfare
that references a news article I read
earlier this Summer that
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
or EBT money is
um is in a classification of like snack
food and soda I think 10 spit on soda
and I want to say like 20 or 30 percent
spent on junk food
and that's not the fault of those people
uh welfare only makes up a small
percentage of our budget you know we can
if we can fuel a proxy war in a foreign
land but we can't take care of our own
that's all the songs trying to say
it's just saying that the government
takes people who are needy dependent and
makes them needy independent
and at some point I will dissect all my
lyrics of all my songs if that's what I
need to do I mean 30 some million people
understood what I was saying but it only
takes a few to try to uh derail the
train you know to try to send out false
narratives
and I'm sure there'll be more of that to
come it's like uh
it's driving people crazy to see the
unity that's come from this from all
walks
this isn't a Republican and Democrat
thing this isn't even a a United States
thing like this has been a Global
Response and don't let anybody tell you
otherwise go on YouTube and watch all
the response videos you know and don't
shoot the messenger like I'm a nobody
it's my belief that divine intervention
has put me in this position and this
point in time to get a message across
and that's all there is to it like I'm
nobody special you know I I feel
terrible almost that I've been put in
this place because there there are a lot
of artists and musicians out there that
are far more talented that have put in
way more hours than me like I don't
deserve I don't deserve to sit in the
top five places on the iTunes charts and
the truth is I really could give a sh!t
less about the iTunes charts what I care
about is connecting with people what I
care about is
sh!t
I don't I don't know what this country
is going to look like in 10 or 20 years
if things don't change I don't know what
this world's gonna look like
and
like something has to be done about it
you know
there's been too many people die
there's been too many people
sacrifice everything they've had people
die before they even before they're even
18 you know
just sit for us to all sit here and just
do the stupid sh!t it is that we do
every day that keeps us all all beat
down and divided like
that's what I want to see stop
and
I'm gonna do everything I can
to influence that
at all costs even if it does um
even if it does throw my world upside
down it's what it's well worth it but
for now I'm hanging in there and I'm I'm
doing what I can
and I I really appreciate everybody
who's along for the ride so
uh there's a lot more to come and I'm
excited for it and I'll see you on the
next one

oh
it's crazy to me because uh
I remember back in June I played here
for about 20 people and um
but that's that's the beautiful part of
this country though is even an idiot
like me can make something happen so if
I can do it you can do it
[Applause]
before we start singing
and I mean we because I hope you all are
going to be singing too
[Applause]
I just had something I felt compelled to
share with you
[Music]
this is in a song
Psalm 37
12-20
the wicked plot against the righteous
and gnashed their teeth at them but the
Lord laughs at the wicked for he knows
their day is coming
the wicked draw the sword and bend the
bow to bring down the poor and needy to
sway those whose ways are upright
but their swords will pierce their own
hearts and their bows will be broken
better the little that have
righteousness
than the wealth of many Wicked
for the power of the wicked will be
broken but the Lord upholds the
righteous
the blameless spend their days under the
Lord's care and their inheritance will
endure forever
in times of disaster they will not
wither
a days of famine they will have plenty
but the Wicked Will perish
though the Lord's enemies are like the
flowers of the field
they will be consumed and they will go
up and smoke