Don’t have 2½ hours to hear Oliver Anthony and Joe Rogan ponder life? We have you covered with takeaways, including the real ‘Rich Men North of Richmond’ story.
Don’t have 2½ hours to listen to Oliver Anthony and Joe Rogan as they ponder the meaning of life? We’ve got you covered.
Anthony, the man behind the fast-rising, chart-topping hit “Rich Men North of Richmond,” shot to the forefront of media fodder when his song became an anthem for conservatives quick to claim ownership of the new star. Last Wednesday, when eight Republican presidential hopefuls faced off at the first GOP primary debate, the question that kicked off the night was, “Why is [‘Rich Men North of Richmond’] striking such a nerve in this country right now?”
But Anthony, who has described himself as down the center politically, was quick to disavow the way his song has been co-opted by conservatives and weaponized politically.
“I don’t know that I’ve seen anything get such a positive response from such a diverse group of people,” he said in a YouTube address last week. “And I think that terrifies the people that I sing about in that song.”
Anthony, whose real name is Chris Anthony Lunsford, joined Rogan for Wednesday’s episode of “The Joe Rogan Experience,” where the two mused on everything from the Farmville, Va., native’s instant rise to fame to the state of U.S. politics to mental health to pornography.
Here are the major takeaways from the nearly three-hour episode.
“I used to just not really understand when people talk about mental health and anxiety, because everyone gets stressed out over stuff,” Anthony told Rogan. “And so you think of anxiety as being this normal phenomenon everyone deals with, but your mind can really put you in a dark place to where that thing just holds on to, and it makes it very difficult for you to do anything. I spent at least two years of my life almost constantly having what felt like a knot [in my chest.]”
Anthony said he thinks much of his anxiety stemmed from him feeling like he was running out of time to pursue music.
