Following Historic Chart Triumph, Oliver Anthony Unveils New Song, ‘I Want to Go Home’
The track is already taking YouTube and Spotify by storm.
Oliver Anthony – I Want To Go Home; Photo via YouTube
Oliver Anthony is taking the music industry by storm with another new song, “I Want To Go Home.”
The viral hitmaker shared the brand-new tune on Tuesday evening (Aug. 22) and it has already amassed over 1.5 million views and is the No. 1 trending song on YouTube since its debut just hours ago.
The song, which has also raked in over 1.4 million streams on Spotify, explores subjects such as religion, war, the sale of family farms, and the continual disappearance of green spaces.
New Song Out Now
“If it won’t for my old dogs and the good Lord/ They’d have me strung up in the psych ward/ ‘Cause every day livin’ in this new world/ Is one too many days to me,” Anthony sings on the tune’s first verse.
On the second verse, he sings, “Son, we’re on the brink of the next world war/ And I don’t think nobody’s prayin’ no more/ And I ain’t sayin I know it for sure/ I’m just down on my knees.”
“I Want To Go Home” also touches on his mental health struggles as he begs “the good Lord” to take him home.
“Beggin’, Lord, take me home/ I wanna go home/ I don’t know which road to go/ It’s been so long/ I just know I didn’t used to wake up feelin’ this way/ Cussin’ myself every damn day/ There’s always some kind of bill to pay/ People just doin’ what the rich men say/ I wanna go home,” Oliver Anthony sings on the chorus.
The new tune comes in the form of a performance clip that features Oliver Anthony strumming an acoustic guitar in a wooded area singing the tune with his dogs and pickup truck in the background. The video concludes with a scripture from Mark 8:36, which reads: “For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?”
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Chart History
Oliver Anthony’s new song “I Want To Go Home” comes just days after he made history with his viral hit, “Rich Men North Of Richmond.”
The 31-year-old Virginia native officially earned his first-ever No. 1 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 and Billboard Hot Country Songs chart with “Rich Men North of Richmond.”
The viral hitmaker has become the first artist in history to debut at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart with no prior chart history “in any form,” according to a report from Billboard.
“Rich Men North Of Richmond”
This achievement makes Oliver Anthony the first unsigned artist since 1994 to be No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. The last unsigned artist to earn a No. 1 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 was Lisa Loeb with her single, “Stay (I Missed You),” which was released in 1994 via RCA Records.
According to Billboard, “Rich Men North Of Richmond” marks “the 1,153rd song to top the Hot 100 over the chart’s 65-year history, and the 69th to debut at No. 1.”
Oliver Anthony shared his reaction to the chart-topping success of his blue-collar anthem, exclusively with Billboard.
“The hopelessness and frustration of our times resonate in the response to this song,” he told the outlet. ”The song itself is not anything special, but the people who have supported it are incredible and deserve to be heard.”
The news comes after he introduced himself to fans and shared his response to the success of the “Rich Men North Of Richmond” performance video, which has amassed over 35 million views since its debut, via a lengthy and revealing social media post.
“I’m sitting in such a weird place in my life right now,” he wrote and admitted that he never anticipated that the song would get more than a few hundred thousand views.
“I still don’t quite believe what has went on since we uploaded that. It’s just strange to me,” he wrote.
In the days since the song began to go viral, Anthony said he received more than 50,000 messages reacting to the song and how it speaks to the hardships that people face.
Offers Poured In
The success of the song also came with business offers, some of which have been extremely lucrative, however, Oliver Anthony said he’s not interested in any of it.
“People in the music industry give me blank stares when I brush off 8 million dollar offers. I don’t want 6 tour buses, 15 tractor trailers and a jet [and] I don’t want to play stadium shows, I don’t want to be in the spotlight,” he explained. “I wrote the music I wrote because I was suffering with mental health and depression. These songs have connected with millions of people on such a deep level because they’re being sung by someone feeling the words in the very moment they were being sung. No editing, no agent, no bullshit. Just some idiot and his guitar. The style of music that we should have never gotten away from in the first place.”
He went on to share his brutally honest opinion of himself and the United States of America.
“There’s nothing special about me. I’m not a good musician, I’m not a very good person. I’ve spent the last 5 years struggling with mental health and using alcohol to drown it. I am sad to see the world in the state it’s in, with everyone fighting with each other. I have spent many nights feeling hopeless, that the greatest country on Earth is quickly fading away,” he stated.
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True Life Experiences
His life experiences led him to write “Rich Men North of Richmond,” detailing the struggles of the working class in the face of wealthy individuals driven by greed, and in his lengthy message to his followers, he recalled dropping out of high school at 17, earning his GED and working in plant jobs in North Carolina for $14.50 an hour. He also shared the story of an injury that sidelined him from his job for six months and how his latest job allowed him to speak to working-class individuals who are fed up with the cards they’ve been dealt.
“From 2014 until just a few days ago, I’ve worked outside sales in the industrial manufacturing world. My job has taken me all over Virginia and into the Carolinas, getting to know tens of thousands of other blue collar workers on job sites and in factories. I’ve spent all day, everyday, for the last 10 years hearing the same story. People are SO damn tired of being neglected, divided and manipulated,” he wrote.
He went on to question, “When is enough, enough? When are we going to fight for what is right again?”
He closed his post with a reminder about freedom of speech and the liberties Americans have been granted thanks to those who died to protect them.
“Never in world history has the world had the freedom it currently does. Don’t let them take it away from you. Just like those once wandering in the desert, we have lost our way from God and have let false idols distract us and divide us. It’s a damn shame.”
Additionally, Oliver Anthony will soon make his third public appearance since going viral at North Street Press Club in Farmville, Virginia on Wednesday, August 23 from 7-8pm. He will also host a meet-and-greet and poster signing after the show.
Lauren Jo Black is a longtime country music journalist, editor, host, and media personality whose work has helped shape the conversation around country music for nearly two decades. As the current Editor-in-Chief of Country Now, she has become one of the genre’s most respected voices, interviewing hundreds of country music’s biggest stars, including Dolly Parton, Garth Brooks, Reba McEntire, Shania Twain, Randy Travis, Luke Bryan, Carrie Underwood, Blake Shelton, Luke Combs, and countless others. Over the course of her career, Black’s written work and interviews have reached billions of country music fans worldwide. A 2009 graduate of the University of Central Florida, Black began her career by founding Country Music Is Love, one of country music’s earliest independent digital publications, which she later sold to a major record label in 2015 before it was rebranded as Sounds Like Nashville. She then served as the publication’s Editor-in-Chief for more than two years. Her work has also appeared in Forbes, and she previously served as the Country Music Expert for Answers.com. Widely recognized for her expertise, Black has appeared as a featured guest on The Bobby Bones Show, BobbyCast, and Scripps News Morning Rush, providing insight on country music’s biggest moments. She has also hosted Country Now Live, a concert series featuring performances from artists including Lady A, Dierks Bentley, Riley Green, Jordan Davis, Dustin Lynch, Gabby Barrett, Brett Young, Jon Pardi, Kip Moore, Chris Young, and more. The series has welcomed thousands of fans in person while reaching millions more online. In addition, she hosted Connect With Country Now, a weekly interview series featuring conversations with rising country stars. Throughout her career, Black has earned a reputation for discovering and championing artists long before they become household names. She has covered Luke Bryan since the early days of his career, beginning when he was writing songs for other artists, including Billy Currington’s No. 1 hit “Good Directions,” before stepping into the spotlight with his debut single, “All My Friends Say” and eventually becoming one of biggest names in music. She also gave Megan Moroney her first opportunity to walk a major red carpet as Country Now’s official guest correspondent at the 2022 CMA Awards. An interview she conducted in 2018 for Forbes.com with Luke Combs that inspired his multi-week No. 1 hit, “Doin’ This.” She has also hosted stages at CMA Fest, moderated an industry panel at Country Radio Seminar, and helped lead important conversations about the evolving landscape of country music media. Beyond journalism, Black has also used her platform to support charitable causes and highlight organizations making an impact. Through Country Now Live, she has helped raise awareness and support for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, while also advocating for animal rescue through Country Now’s Pupdate series, spotlighting organizations including MuttNation Foundation, Wags & Walks, and Proverbs 12:10 Animal Rescue. Black has been recognized as one of Country Aircheck’s Women of Influence and received the 2012 Rising Star Award from the University of Central Florida. She is a longtime member of both the Country Music Association (CMA) and the Academy of Country Music (ACM). After nearly 20 years covering country music, Lauren Jo Black has spent her career telling the stories behind the artists, songs, and moments that have shaped the genre. Her first-ever book, Country Music Forever: An A-to-Z Celebration of Icons, Songs and Stories, brings that same passion and firsthand knowledge to the page, celebrating not only the legendary artists and timeless songs that have become the soundtrack to generations of fans, but also the places, traditions, and cultural moments that have made country music one of the most beloved genres around the world.
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