Rich Men North Of Richmond

Lyrics meaning of Rich Men North Of Richmond by Oliver Anthony, and what it is about

Common talking points for the right are included in the song's lyrics. Low salaries ("for bullshit pay"), food poverty ("nothing to eat"), high taxes ("taxed to no end"), high inflation ("dollar ain't shit"), child trafficking ("minors on an island"), welfare misuse ("the obese milkin' welfare"), and power concentration ("wanna have total control") are some of its themes.

Anthony stated that he hopes to be a "voice for those people" and that his lyrics try to speak for the working class, pointing out that "whatever it is they're doing, they can't quite get ahead" in a video introducing his songwriting.

Conservatives praised the song, and it was brought up during a Republican presidential debate. Anthony countered that attempts to "stick me in a political bucket" were futile and that the song was a critique of both Republican and Democratic officials.

The song gained popularity on social media and quickly went viral. It shot to the top of the sales and streaming charts in a matter of days after its release, and Anthony became the first artist to debut at the top of the Billboard Hot 100 without having any kind of chart history before.

Rich Men North Of Richmond lyrics by Oliver Anthony

I've been sellin' my soul, workin' all day

Overtime hours for bullshit pay

So I can sit out here and waste my life away

Drag back home and drown my troubles away

It's a damn shame what the world's gotten to

For people like me and people like you

Wish I could just wake up and it not be true

But it is, oh, it is

Livin' in the new world

With an old soul

These rich men north of Richmond

Lord knows they all just wanna have total control

Wanna know what you think, wanna know what you do

And they don't think you know, but I know that you do

'Cause your dollar ain't shit and it's taxed to no end

'Cause of rich men north of Richmond

I wish politicians would look out for miners

And not just minors on an island somewhere

Lord, we got folks in the street, ain't got nothin' to eat

And the obese milkin' welfare

Well, God, if you're 5-foot-3 and you're 300 pounds

Taxes ought not to pay for your bags of fudge rounds

Young men are puttin' themselves six feet in the ground

'Cause all this damn country does is keep on kickin' them down

Lord, it's a damn shame what the world's gotten to

For people like me and people like you

Wish I could just wake up and it not be true

But it is, oh, it is

Livin' in the new world

With an old soul

These rich men north of Richmond

Lord knows they all just wanna have total control

Wanna know what you think, wanna know what you do

And they don't think you know, but I know that you do

'Cause your dollar ain't shit and it's taxed to no end

'Cause of rich men north of Richmond

I've been sellin' my soul, workin' all day

Overtime hours for bullshit pay