Impressive is an understatement.
Just twelve days ago, Oliver Anthony released “Rich Men North Of Richmond” and not only has the video racked up a massive 30 million views on RadioWV’s YouTube account, the song is now No. 1 on Billboard’s all-genre Hot 100 chart.
What’s most impressive is that Anthony, a guy from Farmville, Va, who no one had even heard of until two weeks ago, just became the first artist in history to ever debut at the top spot without previously appearing on any Billboard chart ever before.
Oliver Anthony Music becomes the first artist in history to debut at #1 on the Hot 100 without previously appearing on any Billboard chart. pic.twitter.com/r6u0nzCdXy
— chart data (@chartdata) August 21, 2023
The Hot 100‘s chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), online streaming, and radio play in the U.S.
With that being his biggest accolade thus far, don’t forget the song also went no. 1 on iTunes, he was surprised by Jamey Johnson on stage in NC, and Anthony has apparently been offered multiple deals worth millions, but admits he turned them down.
It’s too early to predict if this newfound fame fades out for Anthony, but as of right now, he’s humbly taking in every minute of it.