Country singer Oliver Anthony has gained a new fan through his viral hit "Rich Men North of Richmond," with 2024 presidential candidate Robert Kennedy Jr. calling it an "extraordinary song."
Kennedy's praise for Anthony's song was made on social media, where the Democratic candidate criticized the Republican Party's first debate of the 2024 election cycle. Kennedy claimed that the debate was "out of sync with the mood" of the United States, and noted how the debate started with a request from attendees to comment on Anthony's hit song.
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"Now that is an extraordinary song — raw, yet intelligent; defiant, yet compassionate," Kennedy wrote on social media. "It’s about working-class hardship. It is about low wages (“bullsh*t pay”). It’s about degraded food supply, elite corruption, obesity, homelessness, despair."
Now that is an extraordinary song — raw, yet intelligent; defiant, yet compassionate. It’s about working-class hardship. It is about low wages (“bullshit pay”). It’s about degraded food supply, elite corruption, obesity, homelessness, despair.
— Robert F. Kennedy Jr (@RobertKennedyJr) August 24, 2023
The presidential candidate claimed that the Republican candidates who were onstage during the debate could have discussed the topics that Anthony sang about, but instead opted to recycle "Reagan-era cliches," such as cutting down on spending, ending abortion, and "being tough" on drugs. Kennedy suggested that politicians ought to "tap into the swelling popular will" of turning "this country around" rather than fighting each other.
"Oliver Anthony has tapped into something that can unify our nation," Kennedy wrote. "Nearly everyone wants to reverse our decline, to end the corruption, to rebuild from the inside. Let’s talk about how to do that."
Oliver Anthony has tapped into something that can unify our nation. Nearly everyone wants to reverse our decline, to end the corruption, to rebuild from the inside. Let’s talk about how to do that. #Kennedy24
— Robert F. Kennedy Jr (@RobertKennedyJr) August 24, 2023
Anthony's song, released on Aug. 8, has so far received over 37 million views and over 1.5 million likes on YouTube. A new report states that the singer is making $40,000 every day through people streaming the song online.
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A total of eight Republican candidates, including Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL), entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, former Vice President Mike Pence, former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley, former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC), former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson, and Gov. Doug Burgum (R-ND), were present during Wednesday night's debate.
Former President Donald Trump qualified to attend the debate, but opted not to and instead did a one-on-one interview with former Fox News anchor Tucker Carlson. Trump's interview was released on X, the platform once known as Twitter, a few minutes before the start of the Republican debate, and has so far received over 213 million views as of early Thursday afternoon.