Divine Intervention: The Key to the Success of Oliver Anthony’s Song

The singer behind the anthem “Rich Men North of Richmond” attributes the song’s success to “divine intervention” as he insists that its lyrics were not directed at one particular political party.

In a YouTube video released Friday, Oliver Anthony proclaimed, “It’s my belief that divine intervention has put me in this position at this point in time to get a message across, and that’s all there is to it.” His song “Rich Men North of Richmond” hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for two weeks in a row, a coveted position reflecting its popularity among the American public.

Additionally, “Rich Men North of Richmond” is at the No. 2 spot on the top 100 on the iTunes charts, another measure of popularity. The song is written from the perspective of an overworked blue-collar worker who believes that “Rich Men North of Richmond” want to have “total control” over every aspect of his life. 

Although the song does not elaborate on who the phrase “Rich Men North of Richmond” refers to, it is widely understood as a shot at career politicians and bureaucrats in Washington, D.C. Anthony, who was relatively unknown before “Rich Men North of Richmond” became a major hit, explained that “the one thing that has bothered me is seeing people wrap politics up into this.” 

According to Anthony, “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.”

While Anthony did not single out any politician, media personality or musician by name, his song came up at last week’s Republican presidential debate. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis praised the song as an illustration that “our country is in decline” and that “this decline is not inevitable” but rather “a choice.”

“I wrote that song about those people,” Anthony insisted. “For them to have to sit there and listen to that, that cracks me up.” 

He further rejected the premise that the song was a critique specifically directed at President Joe Biden: “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.” 

Anthony acknowledged that despite his intentions, the song has become a political football: “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 sh–s got to stop,” he declared. At the same time, he expressed gratitude that his song received “such [a] positive response from such a diverse group of people.” 

Anthony discussed his faith in a previous video he posted on his YouTube account three weeks ago, one day before the song’s release. “I spent a long time being angry, an angry little agnostic punk, and I remember talking about ‘sky daddy’ and ‘cloud papa,’” he recalled.

“I would get so angry about the concept of God because I had sort of perverted what my version of God was because I looked at the religion of man as God and not God Himself,” Anthony added. “There is a divine creator that loves you, and sometimes it takes falling down on your knees and getting ready to call things quits before it becomes obvious that He’s there.”

Anthony added, “He’s always there, you just got to look out for Him.” The “about” section on Anthony’s website also mentions the artist’s faith in God, lamenting that “we have lost our way from God and have let false idols distract us and divide us.” The singer’s website also elaborates on his personal background, noting that he “worked outside sales in the industrial manufacturing world” for about a decade until his song took off.

He cited his work traveling “all over Virginia and into the Carolinas, getting to know tens of thousands of other blue-collar workers on job sites and in factories” as the inspiration for his song. “People are so damn tired of being neglected, divided and manipulated,” Anthony concluded. 

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