Not About The Money: After Sudden Stardom, Oliver Anthony Reveals Why He Turned Down $8 Million Offer - 'We Have Lost Our Way From God'

On Thursday, newly famous singer Oliver Anthony revealed that he turned down an $8 million offer from the music industry after his hit song 'Rich Men North of Richmond has gone viral over the past week.

Anthony took to his Facebook page to explain that he is "just some idiot" with a guitar and that he doesn't want to be famous and go on huge tours across the country in order to increase his fame and wealth.

Anthony did reveal that his real name is Christopher Anthony Lunsford and that the pseudonym of Oliver Anthony is to honor his grandfather who grew up in Appalachia. "At this point, I'll gladly go by Oliver because everyone knows me as such," he wrote. "But my friends and family still call me Chris. You can decide for yourself, either is fine."

"I'm sitting in such a weird place in my life right now. I never wanted to be a full-time musician, much less sit at the top of the iTunes charts. Draven from RadioWv and I filmed these tunes on my land with the hope that it may hit 300k views. I still don't quite believe what has went on since we uploaded that. It's just strange to me," he wrote.

"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. 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," he explained. "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."

"I've spent all day, everyday, for the last 10 years hearing the same story," the singer continued. "People are SO damn tired of being neglected, divided and manipulated. There's nothing special about me. I'm not a good musician, I'm not a very good person. I've spent the last five 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."

"That being said, I HATE the way the Internet has divided all of us," he continued. "The Internet is a parasite, that infects the minds of humans and has their way with them. Hours wasted, goals forgotten, loved ones sitting in houses with each other distracted all day by technology made by the hands of other poor souls in sweat shops in a foreign land."

"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," he concluded in his Facebook post.
 

As previously reported by the DC Enquirer, Anthony published the video "Moving Forward" on his YouTube channel earlier this week where he thanked Morris Farm for hosting him over the weekend and the thousands of people who came out to hear him sing. The Virginia factory worker explained that people flew in to come to see him, explaining that he "signed and took pictures a good four hours after the show."

"It wasn't like people just came up and shook my hand. They came up and told me about the battles that they've been dealing with, depression and suicide, and money. You know, those are real problems," the country singer explained.

He went on to explain that the song wasn't some kind of "masterpiece" but that the emotions in the song already exist in the hearts of many Americans. "My question to you is when Oliver Anthony is long gone and forgotten about, what can you do in your own life to maintain this energy, this positivity, this unity that I see among people like I have never seen before," he said while driving. "What are the next steps to make life better for people? What can you do for your neighbor? There used to be such a strong sense of community in this country and you still see it a lot in small-town America but even there it's dying out. Things just change too quickly these days, you know?"

Despite this trend, Anthony explained that Americans are focusing too much on "hate" and instead Americans should be grateful for modern luxuries. He also emphasized helping others in everyday life in order to overcome that hate.

"We're all so disconnected from each other. We need to find a way to take this energy from this anomaly of a song," Anthony said before explaining that it's not him who made this song so popular but that it is a reflection of the struggles that Americans are going through.

"Find a way to start fixing those problems. Find a way to start having good conversations with people who live around you. That's all I want out of this," Anthony concluded.

Oliver Anthony is striking a chord with Americans everywhere. His raw emotion comes through his music and it is no wonder why his song got tens of millions of views.

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