"Rich, White, Straight Men" is a song by American singer Kesha. It was written by the artist alongside Pebe Sebert, Wrabel, and Stuart Crichton, with production being handled by the latter. The song was surprisingly released to YouTube on June 2, 2019, and later issued as a standalone single through Kemosabe and RCA Records on June 8. It received mixed reviews.
Release
"Rich, White, Straight Men" was surprisingly released to YouTube on June 2, 2019, unbeknownst to Kesha's record label RCA Records.[1] Six days later, it impacted online music stores and streaming platforms as a standalone single.[2] The song's artwork consists of a blurry photograph of Kesha giving the middle finger, an action she performs on loop in the accompanying video.[3][4]
Sam Van Pykeren of Mother Jones complimented the song's uniqueness and political tone, writing, "Kesha finally sheds the restraints of her recent work for the direct and literal, returning to what made her a star in the first place: excessiveness packaged in oddity."[2] Frida Garza of feminist website Jezebel also praised the song's lyrical and musical characteristics while affirming that "this song is unlike any other Kesha's ever released; [...] This is far from the perfectly manicured pop songs that were once her calling card."[15] At Paper, Michael Love Michael questioned the song's effectiveness against the political group it addresses, although he connected to its premise, commenting, "Toppling an oppressive and domineering patriarchy starts with that kind of rage. As it should be."[16]Hollywood Life's Brandy Robidoux deemed the track "controversial".[17]
Writing for the conservative website Washington Examiner, Madeline Fry called the song "boring" and criticized Kesha's intention to "blame the ills of society on all white males."[18]
Credits and personnel
Credits organized in alphabetical order by surname and adapted from Tidal.[10]
Dale Becker – mastering
Stuart Crichton – songwriting, production, keyboards, mixing, programming
