America REACTS to "Rich Men North Of Richmond" by Oliver Anthony
In case you are living under a rock (or taking a healthy absence from the internet), independent artist Oliver Anthony released a song, “Rich Men North of Richmond” that’s gone wildly viral, and as usual, fools on Twitter and in the media tried to spin it as a right-wing white supremacist anthem for conspiracy theorists.
But it’s a heartfelt song about working “overtime hours for bullshit pay” that just about anyone can relate to—maybe even a couple of Rich Men North of Richmond. Here is a music video compilation I put together of independent YouTube creators reacting to it live.
If you’re older and don’t know what a “react” video is, it’s basically like the news—except instead of rich men and women reacting to a clip out of context, it’s regular people reacting to a full video. It’s become its own genre on YouTube. This video was a sample of about 70 reaction videos; although, there are now many many more.
My compilation went viral on Twitter (X) too with 2.5 million views so far.
Thanks, everyone!
"it’s basically like the news—except instead of rich men and women reacting to a clip out of context, it’s regular people reacting to a full video."
Great reframe of what corporate media represents.
Great work, Matt! I cried and then shared it with family and friends who were also moved.