Sitting in the grass on the plot of land where his career took off, smoking a CBD joint, and talking about all of his beliefs. Oliver Anthony is giving fans what he feels is a long-overdue video talking about his views, where he is today, and his vision for his traveling ministry.
The Virginia native, who went viral last year for his single “Rich Men North Of Richmond,” informed fans last week that he’s changing his focus from music to ministry. Although he says he’s leaving the music industry, that does not mean he will not be making music. With his announcement last week, he told fans:
“I’m in the process of getting out of the music industry. It’s a big joke. The plan is to eventually change my entire focus to traveling ministry work. It’s all part of this Rural Revival thing. I just have to go at it in baby steps since it’s completely DIY. No, I’ll still be releasing music just like normal, I’ll just be set up legally as a ministry.”
In the video posted today, Anthony further explains why he feels this calling, his hopes for the Rural Revival Project, and how it will bring economic prosperity to smaller communities.
While the 25-minute video consists largely of him talking about politics and how he feels we are living in a world with a failed system, there is one point that I found rather interesting: how he compares the music industry to the government today.
Anthony has always been political on his platform, which is how he broke into the scene. Since the beginning of his fame he’s been Biblically-aligned, does not believe in government control, and believes we live in a broken system where you are overworked and underpaid, and struggling to raise a family on a single income these days. He somehow ties all of these thoughts back into music, though, and why it’s spurring him to make a change.
“I don’t know what I am. I guess I’m a conservative. I am a conservative because I believe in the first and second amendment. I don’t know if I’m a Republican or what the hell I am. I am just somebody who thinks the whole way we live is so a** backward and so stupid. It serves no one than people at the top of a hierarchy that we no longer really need to serve.
Like we don’t need those people, we don’t need them to come save us, we don’t need to eat Tyson chicken.”
After that, he goes on a slight tangent about who he thinks needs more accessible healthy foods, does not educate our children well, and that our news sources aren’t even really anymore. This is how he sets it up to tie into music and how he feels it’s a hierarchy similar to the government that does not serve the people.
“Having to spend a year in this music industry has just opened my eyes to how much control and how much visibility there is on the top down. Like the analytics that I can pull on just my fan base is terrifying. It’s information I feel like the FBI shouldn’t have, much less me. We give ourselves away, don’t we? In order to be a part of this network…
And so I’ve decided that moving forward I don’t need a Nashville management company. I don’t even need to exist in the space of music. So, I’m looking to switch my whole business over to traveling ministry. My great-grandfather was a traveling minister… And I just want to keep things in the family business moving forward.”
He then shares further details as to how he hopes his Rural Revival Project will benefit communities once they get the ball rolling on it after the first show on November 2nd.
“I have this vision… I want to create a routing schedule that runs parallel to Nashville, circumvents the monopoly of Live Nation and Ticketmaster, and goes into towns that haven’t had music in them in a long time. It stimulates their economy, showcases their culture, it uses local vendors and local musicians. You’re not having to drive out to Pittsburgh to a concrete amphitheater to see a show. It’s done out on a farm or on a main street that desperately needs the economic impact.”
It’s clear that Anthony has never had an issue with voicing his thoughts and beliefs and has done things his way since his Radio WV video went viral. His ability to speak freely has attracted many fans over the years, and many agree with him on many of his points.
I will be interested to see how the Rural Revival develops, and it’s respectable that he’s continuing to go about things his way, and of course, this is only a brief summary of a few points in a 25 minute video… I’d urge you to watch the entire thing:
