“Progress” by John Rich

These days, it’s almost as if we have two separate music industries. That is to say that with the rise of the internet and social media has also come songs, such as “Progress”, which due to its anti-mainstream tone may be largely ignored by the music industry proper. But still this track hit on iTunes, besting the likes (stateside) of Lizzo, Harry Styles and Beyoncé, thus warranting this analysis of its lyrics.

You can view the lyrics, alternate interprations and sheet music for John Rich's Progress at Lyrics.org.

And actually, it can be said that the aforenoted industry divide, how some songs for instance blow up on iTunes but fail on Billboard, is largely attributable to an ideological divide within America itself. And most simply summarized, that’s the reality which this song is speaking to. 

Is “Progress” an Anti-Woke Song?

Some analysts have described Progress as being ‘anti-woke’, ‘MAGA-inspired’, ‘patriotic’ or what have you. But more fundamentally explained, what the vocalist is asserting is that he’s not inclined to go along with the flow as dictated by govvie. And he is speaking specifically within the context of where he perceives America is currently headed.

Where the patriotic element comes into play is that reading in between the lines, John Rich presents himself as an conservative American or, as some may term it, a constitutionalist. So for instance, he does not approve of the liberal immigration policies his political leaders are currently practicing. Nor does he like the fact that now, his countrymen have abandoned a faith in God and replaced it with belief in government. Furthermore, Rich also criticizes what appears to be ever-increasing limitations on the freedom of speech.

Certain Matters

There are certain matters that the powers that be tend to present as being conducive to the “progress” of the nation – thus the title of this song. However, John disagrees. And some of these matters include:

  • mass immigration
  • big government
  • banning of all potentially-offensive language

What John is arguing is that such assertions are basically a bunch of baloney. Rather the way he sees it is that such policies are being instituted, in his own words, in the name of “the systematic destruction of” the United States. Or put otherwise, this song ventures into conspiracy theory territory. And as such, the conclusive message is that unlike the masses at large, the vocalist and his ilk will never submit to the present system.

Lyrics for John Rich's "Progress"

Who is John Rich?

John Rich is a country singer from the southern United States who has been musically active since his teens, at first most notably in a songwriting capacity. His own personal discography commenced in 2001, and since then he’s dropped three studio albums, namely:

  • “Rescue Me” (2001)
  • “Underneath the Same Moon” (2006)
  • “Son of a Preacher Man” (2009)

Concurrently, he has experienced more success as part of a musical duo known as Big & Rich, alongside one Big Kenny. And by the looks of things John is a religious-minded artist. Furthermore, he also appears to have an above-average political history, such as publicly supporting Donald Trump’s presidency.

More about “Progress”

This song was written and also apparently produced by John Rich. 

“Progress” does not have the backing of any label. John independently released the track on 22 July 2022 via Truth Social. It should be noted that this is the social-media network that was recently founded by former US President Donald Trump. 

As implied earlier, this track has reached number one on iTunes US Top Songs chart.

John Rich's "Progress"

10 Responses

  1. Anonymous says:

    I agree with the words of the song 100%

  2. Bemusic says:

    Bless you for one of the best songs ever written .. it truly expresses what most of us are thinking & feeling

  3. Anonymous says:

    John Rich song speaks the truth

  4. Anonymous says:

    MAGA could never do comedy and as this song shows, they’re not very creative at music either.

  5. Anonymous says:

    Spot on message needed for the USA masses to hear and act upon. I’ve shared with many of my friends, family and
    friends I’ve dumped because political differences. No one can avoid the battle lines being drawn at this point.

  6. R. Temple says:

    I’ve looked at all the official iTunes Charts and it is NOT number one. (prove me wrong)

  7. Cletus Wolfe says:

    When will a cd be available

  8. Anonymous says:

    Great song

  9. Anonymous says:

    catchy but offensive song . Something is seriously wrong with you if you agree with his views

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