Here's to You, Oliver Anthony!
At this point, everyone and their mother has opined on the precocious Oliver Anthony and his out-of-the-blue new single, "Rich Men North of Richmond." Who knew that there were so many accredited music critics out there! Same as the Barbie movie and Oppenheimer, most people are disinterested in what the editorial staff at whichever publication thinks of Anthony's song. And yet here I go throwing my two cents in! Ha! For what it's worth, I thought it was great. He tapped into some very real feelings of blue-collar disenfranchisement. We ought not forget that there are tens of millions of folks out there in the heartland that feel totally abandoned by our unfortunate elite. Are these feelings invalid? Of course not! But some - and I won't name names - feel as though these grievances are unfounded. And need I mind you that much of Anthony's burgeoning fanbase is composed of ardent Trump voters? Trump, like Anthony, also tapped into these same populist sympathies...