Parker McCollum Addresses Autotune Allegations (Again) After Fan Yells, “F*ck Oliver Anthony” at Live Show

Oliver Anthony caught his big break when he released the country-folk tune “Rich Men North of Richmond” in August 2023. The song’s anti-establishment message resonated with many, sending it straight to the top of the Billboard Hot 100. Anthony, 32, has used his newfound platform to continue railing against the mainstream. Most recently, he posted a 15-minute vlog on YouTube in which he seemingly accused Parker McCollum of using drum loops, backing tracks, and Auto-Tune during his live shows. Unsurprisingly, McCollum’s fans have not responded kindly. See what the “Hell of a Year” singer had to say when a fan expressed their feelings toward Anthony during a recent show.

Videos by American Songwriter

“Ain’t a Damn Thing Fake” About Parker McCollum’s Live Shows

As 2024 winds down, Parker McCollum is wrapping up a highly successful Burn It Down tour. The ACM Award winner stopped at Simmons Bank Arena in North Little Rock, Arkansas, last Saturday (Dec. 28.)

As McCollum strummed along on his guitar, someone in the crowd yelled, “F— Oliver Anthony!” Not missing a beat, the “Burn It Down” singer replied, “Word.”

And that wasn’t all he had to say about that. “I just want you guys to know that when you come see my show, when you come see me and these guys right here, there ain’t a damn thing fake about it,” McCollum said emphatically, as fans cheered.

@kayla..mc

#parkermccollum speaking out in LR. @parkermccollum @Oliver Anthony

♬ original sound – Kayla

What Did Oliver Anthony Say?

Oliver Anthony aired his grievances against the modern country music scene in a Dec. 6 YouTube vlog titled “What I’ve Learned From the Music Industry So Far.” In the 15-minute clip, he accused “a lot of these mainstream acts” of relying on backing tracks.

[RELATED: “Shut Your Mouth. Shut Up!”: Paul Cauthen Calls Out Oliver Anthony Over Accusation-Packed Vlog]

“I won’t say who the act is, but I think it was at South Carolina at the Myrtle Beach one, the band who played after us, that dude had six autotune modulators on a pedal board on stage, just to help him with vocal pitch live,” said the Virginia-born artist.

@countrycentral

In a video uplaoded by Oliver Anthony earlier this week, he claims that Parker McCollum, who performed after him at Carolina Country Music Festival in Myrtle Beach, SC, used autotune and backing tracks during his set. #oliveranthony #parkermccollum

♬ original sound – Country Central

While Anthony never explicitly named the artist, internet sleuths divined that the “Rich Men North of Richmond” singer took the stage just ahead of Parker McCollum at the Carolina Country Music Fest in June.

It’s getting real y’all

CCMF preps are almost finished and thousands of people will be here in the sand to watch Parker McCollum, Larry Fleet, and Oliver Anthony when it kicks off tomorrow night 🤠@wmbfnews pic.twitter.com/wqn0Q0D9PF

— Teagan Brown (@Teagannbrownn) June 5, 2024

McCollum fired back at the “100% fabricated” allegations with a video message delivered via horseback.

@parkermccollum

Saw there was some speculation going around on this and wanted to clear things up. Not sure if it was a mix up on which show/festival, but can confirm we have never once used any backing tracks or tuning and will never be true for my live show. We are a real band out there ripping it live every single night trying to respect country music as it should be.

♬ original sound – parkermccollum

“We will always be out there swinging it as a real band, trying to do our best to respect country music,” he said.

Featured image by Virisa Yong/BFA.com/Shutterstock