Oliver Anthony Claims He’s Getting $8 Million Offers as Political Connection Emerges

Oliver Anthony shares more of his story and claims he's passed on $8 million offers from record labels in a new post to Facebook.

A wordy introductory letter reflects on the "Rich Men North of Richmond" singer's expectations for his song. Then, he fills in some gaps in his timeline and reveals why he uses a nom de plume.

Related: Here Are the Lyrics to Oliver Anthony's "Rich Men North of Richmond"

"My grandfather was Oliver Anthony, and 'Oliver Anthony Music' is a dedication not only to him, but 1930s Appalachia where he was born and raised," his Facebook post reads.

• "Rich Men North of Richmond" dropped on Aug. 8 and is at 18 million views on YouTube as of Aug. 17.
• Until Thursday, Anthony — real name Christopher Anthony Lunsford — was an amateur musician who'd worked factories and struggled with mental health and alcohol most of his adult life.
• A series of tweets clarify his relationship with conservatives as some theorize he's a "plant."

Who Is Oliver Anthony?

Oliver Anthony says he hoped for 300,000 views on "Rich Men North of Richmond," and he has been overwhelmed by the thousands of messages he's received from fans. He explains how he dropped out of high school in 2010, earned his GED, worked "multiple plant jobs" for $14.50 an hour "in a living hell" and then, in 2013, fell at work and fractured his skull.

After recovering, he took work in manufacturing sales and that's where he met the masses of dissatisfied workers he refers to in a dark video shared to YouTube one day prior to the release of the quickly-viral song. The rest of the post moves onto his values, and he mostly speaks in vague terms about being frustrated by the internet dividing people, fighting for what is right, etc ...

The most eye-popping section is the third paragraph, where he says offers for lucrative record deals arrived immediately. Furthermore, he indicates that he's taken meetings with record labels.

"People in the music industry give me blank stares when I brush off 8 million dollar offers (sic)," he writes. "I don't want 6 tour buses, 15 tractor trailers and a jet. I don't want to play stadium shows, I don't want to be in the spotlight."

"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 bulls--t. Just some idiot and his guitar. The style of music that we should have never gotten away from in the first place."

A search of public records finds a 31-year-old Christopher Anthony Lunsford who once lived in Marion, N.C. (McDowell County) and who associated with Anthony Oliver, an 86-year-old male who died in 2019. Taste of Country came across a LinkedIn page that tells a similar story, but the connection to the singing Lunsford could not be confirmed. A lack of verifiable information has empowered skeptics — some theorizing that Anthony is a plant for conservatives.

Recent tweets from a pair of Republican Party pundits add some clarity to how his song may have been boosted by less-than-organic means. The exchange is very abusive, but admissions are made that help.

Twitter user @TheMagaHulk claimed that a CEO of a digital strategy company covered the cost of production for "Rich Men North of Richmond" and heavily amplified it. The CEO, Jason Howerton, admits to helping Anthony, but says no money exchanged hands.

"The full story is I offered to help him during a crazy time and love that I got to see him play. I am a man of my word. He’s a good man & I’d call him a friend, but this is the end of that story," he said during the second of three tweets.

Political commentator Dan Bongino took exception to Maga Hulk's claims, and in a series of violent back-and-forth tweets, the two make accusations and curse often. Bongino does admit that he helped Howerton, however.

Using an outside digital media company to amplify a new song isn't a new concept, but it's still something of a dirty secret in country music. No artist will admit to doing as much, as that would cost them credibility.

While some still question the authenticity of "Rich Men North of Richmond," there's yet to be any hard evidence that someone other than Anthony wrote it.