Rich Man Lyrics
One rich man in ten has a satisfied mind
And I’m the one
A hundred to one says I wouldn't react
But I'm the one in a hundred who would swing right back
Yes, I’m the one
Thousands of steps and staircases to climb
Thousands of men you'd most likely decline
And yet I'm the one
Ten thousand to one, could I possibly bet?
I'm compelled by your love and I haven't lost yet
Clearly, you're the one
One in a million don't mean what it meant
And these millions of gold coins don't gleam when they’re spent
You’re left with none
Ten million dollars could win the whole lot
But if ten million dollars is all that you got
You won't be the one
Hundreds of millions of papers to sign
Hundreds of millions of souls left behind
And yet, we’re the ones
To be one in a billion's a terrible trick
You're the wretched one
When I was young, I was told I’d find
One rich man in ten has a satisfied mind
And I'm the one
About
Rich Man is a tongue-in-cheek ditty built off a sample from “Please Go Easy With Me” by Sierra Leone guitarist S.E. Rogie.
The track plays as both a touching love song and a bitter reminder of the country’s extreme wealth disparity, written from the point of view of a fairly rich musician.
Rich Man serves as a moment of self-awareness for Koenig and the band, as they continue to reflect upon wealth and privilege.
Q&A
Find answers to frequently asked questions about the song and explore its deeper meaning
I actually remember when I first started writing that; it was when we were at the Grammys for [2013’s] Modern Vampires of the City. Sometimes you work so hard to come up with ideas, and you’re down in the mines just trying to come up with stuff. Then other times you’re just about to leave, you listen to something, you come up with a little idea. On this long album, with songs like this and ‘Big Blue,’ they’re like these short-story songs –they’re moments. I just thought there’s something funny about the narrator of the song being like, ‘It’s so hard to find one rich man in town with a satisfied mind. But I am the one.’ It’s the trippiest song on the album.
— Ezra Koenig on Beats One
- 1.Hold You Now
- 2.Harmony Hall
- 3.Bambina
- 4.This Life
- 5.Big Blue
- 6.How Long?
- 8.Rich Man
- 10.My Mistake
- 11.Sympathy
- 12.Sunflower
- 13.Flower Moon
- 14.2021
- 16.Stranger
- 17.Spring Snow
