The Appropriation of “Rich Men North of Richmond”

I heard on the radio that a new viral song has shot its way to the top of the charts, called “Rich Men in Richmond”, and it has already soarked a bunch of controversy, being referenced at the Republican debate last night as an “anthem of sorts”, an anthem which ironically ridiculed the candidates on the stage, as the singer Oliver Anthony to point out in a public address later.

However, interestingly enough this sort of appropriation of country songs as “anthems” for the authoritarian right has happened before, with Bruce Springsteen’s “Born in the USA”. It was popular because of a similar economic cry for relief, at least until it got coopted by Reagan.

Born in the USA by Springsteen

Born down in a dead man’s town The first kick I took was when I hit the ground You end up like a dog that’s been beat too much ‘Til you spend half your life just coverin’ up

Got in a little hometown jam So they put a rifle in my hand Sent me off to a foreign land To go and kill the yellow man

Come back home to the refinery Hiring man says, “Son if it was up to me” Went down to see my V.A. man He said, “Son, don’t you understand”

Down in the shadow of the penitentiary Out by the gas fires of the refinery I’m ten years burning down the road Nowhere to run ain’t got nowhere to go

The song is basically about a small town rural man who grows up living a rough life, which leaves him with many physical and psychological scars that he has to “spend half his life just covering up”. He then was drafted to the military to go fight off in the Vietnam War. After a few years of fighting a needless war, he returns home to find a job, only to be turned away because all the jobs have dried up. Desperate to survive, he goes to the Veteran’s Administration (VA) to get assistance, but is presumably turned away because the VA is underfunded, and he is eventually forced to go to prison, reduced to burning away his potential as he is used and firgitten by the same America he fought to protect.

The song is made more ironic by the fact that he echoes “Born in the USA,” which implies that as an American he should be achieving the American Dream, but he definitely doesn’t achieve them as his potential is wasted away in a jail cell, among the most forgotten in society.

Springsteen’s song poignantly pointed out the realities of being a poor white American citizen, and this struck a chord as the song skyrocketed to popularity, so much so that Ronald Reagan mentioned him in a presidential speech, and used his song to appeal to millions of Americans to win in a landslide in 1984, using the song’s appeal to white Americans and its connection to patriotism. It is still used today at some right leaning rallies as a quintessentiallu american sonf

Rich Men North of Richmond by Anthony

I’ve been sellin’ my soul, workin’ all day Overtime hours for bullshit pay So I can sit out here and waste my life away Drag back home and drown my troubles away

It’s a damn shame what the world’s gotten to For people like me and people like you Wish I could just wake up and it not be true But it is, oh, it is Livin’ in the new world With an old soul These rich men north of Richmond Lord knows they all just wanna have total control Wanna know what you think, wanna know what you do And they don’t think you know, but I know that you do 'Cause your dollar ain’t shit and it’s taxed to no end 'Cause of rich men north of Richmond

I wish politicians would look out for miners And not just minors on an island somewhere Lord, we got folks in the street, ain’t got nothin’ to eat And the obese milkin’ welfare Well, God, if you’re five-foot-three and you’re three-hundred pounds Taxes ought not to pay for your bags of Fudge Rounds Young men are puttin’ themselves six feet in the ground ‘Cause all this damn country does is keep on kickin’ them down

Meanwhile, “Rich Men North of Richmond” has a similar theme and topic of exploitation, this time from the “rich men”. Although it approaches it from a different manner, this time the enemy is more defined, namely rich people.

The chorus is a successor to Springsteen’s song, being that the singer is an “old soul” living in a "new world’. He still experiences a similar hard rural life, having to work hard long hours for “bulls*** pay”, and “waste his life away”.

This is because of the rich people who want to “have total control over your life” and know everything you do, extracting you for every penny you are worth.

He then goes on to slam the politicians for not looking out for rural people like them, and goes on to blame “obese people milking welfare”, an obviously very offensive and stereotypical remark that actually hides a deeper truth to the pain the singer expresses. To cope with the pain, they can tend to “kick down” on other groups, like obese people, who they think are the reason why they don’t have enough to survive. They perceive the whole world as against them, “kicking them down” and never giving them a chance, which can kill them in the pricess. Historically, this has been the case, as more urban areas got the economic benefit of industrialization, and rural areas have been left to fend for themselves, whether it be coal miners trying to unionize; or farmers toiling the soil, trying to compete against Big Agriculture, or small town people struggling to find jobs in rust belts.

Comparisons and Remarks

Both Anthony’s and Springsteen’s songs expeess the plight of rural and poor white male Americans very well. However, they express it in different ways.

Anthony’s song is a variant of Springsteen’s which criticizes the current festering plight of white rural and lower class American, yet again, as it highlights the wealth inequality which leaves many families struggling to survive. It also tends to more directly address the causes of this plight, targeting the rich, politicians, and those who do not pay fairly.

This is different from Springsteen’s story, which is more about the hardships and experiences of life, and more implicitly pointed the American government at that time as the enemy. It chronicles the journey of a forgotten soldier, and how their American Dream was never realized, but constantly teased in front of them.

Because of the mass emotional appeals of these country songs, they have always been targets of right-wing politicians, to make them seem like they are a part of the in group, when in reality, they use people to get and stay in office (note that both of these somgs were popular during presendential runs). So they co-opt the song and misconstrue the singer’s message so as to gain support.

Sorry this hasn’t been thought out too well, i just though an analysis would be interesting, please correct me if i did anything wrong.

Edit: corrected Springstein to Springsteen Edit 2: the person in the Springsteen song was drafted, so i corrected