Zach Bryan has faced a few public controversies since blowing up with the release of his album American Heartbreak.
Bryan gained a following after he began releasing his own music online in 2017. He released two albums before 2022's American Heartbreak , his first record with a major label, skyrocketed him to the top of the charts. Despite his nearly overnight success, Bryan has attempted to set himself apart from the country music genre.
"I don't want to be a country musician. Everyone calls me it. I want to be a songwriter, and you're quintessentially a songwriter," he said in a conversation with Bruce Springsteen published by Rolling Stone in October 2024. "No one calls Bruce Springsteen — hate to use your name in front of you — but no one calls Bruce Springsteen a freaking rock musician, which you are one, but you're also an indie musician, you're also a country musician. You're all these things encapsulated in one man. And that's what songwriting is."
Along with winning over listeners with his music — Bryan dropped six albums and three EPs from 2019 to 2024 — the songwriter has fans invested in his personal life. In October 2024, he announced his split from Brianna "Chickenfry" LaPaglia after more than one year of dating — and LaPaglia later claimed that she was "blindsided."
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"I've been crying for, like, five days straight," she said in a YouTube video after news broke of their split. "I'm at the point where it’s, like, how can you give someone everything and, like, love them so unconditionally through stuff that you shouldn't."
In his own statement, Bryan acknowledged, "I've had an incredibly hard year personally and struggled through some pretty severe things. I thought it would be beneficial for both of us to go out different ways. I am not perfect and never will be."
Scroll down for a look back at Bryan's highs and lows in the spotlight:
Early Music and Viral Success
Bryan got his start on YouTube in 2017, uploading videos of himself singing. Among the first songs he shared were "God Speed," a tune that made its way onto his debut album, and "Heading South," which soon went viral.
Bryan's first album, DeAnn , was released in August 2019 and named after his late mother, who died three years prior. He performed his first live show in the fall of 2019 in Oregon before dropping his second album, Elisabeth , in May 2020. The record features some of Bryan's biggest hits, including "Heading South" and "Revival."
His first two albums were followed by the 2020 EP Quiet, Heavy Dreams . Bryan went on to make his debut at the Grand Ole Opry in April 2021, later signing with Warner Records.
Military Discharge and Divorce
Following in the footsteps of many of his family members, Bryan enlisted in the U.S. Navy when he was 17 years old, and he used his downtime while serving to write music. Bryan announced in October 2021 that he was honorably discharged from the Navy shortly before kicking off his Ain't for Tamin' Tour.
"If it was my decision, I would never get out of the world's greatest Navy, but here I am and they kindly honorably discharged me to go play some music," he wrote via social media at the time.
His departure from the military coincided with his divorce from Rose Madden . The former couple tied the knot in July 2020 and dissolved their marriage one year later. (His album Elisabeth was named after Madden.)
'American Heartbreak' Breaks Through
Bryan's third album and first release through a major label, American Heartbreak , dropped in May 2022, one month after his single "Something in the Orange" became a viral hit. The song peaked at No. 10 on the Billboard Hot 100 and remains one of his most successful to date with more than 1 billion streams on Spotify.
With 34 tracks, American Heartbreak highlighted Bryan's ability to tell stories through his songwriting. The record features fan favorites including "Heavy Eyes," "From Austin," "The Good I'll Do" and "Open the Gate."
Bryan continued to release music throughout 2022, dropping the EP Summertime Blues and scoring another hit with the song "Oklahoma Smokeshow." His single "Burn, Burn, Burn" was released in September 2022, followed by the album All My Homies Hate Ticketmaster , a live recording of his November 2022 concert at Colorado's iconic Red Rocks Amphitheatre. (Bryan refused to sell tickets to his 2023 tour on Ticketmaster, emphasizing in a statement that "working class people should still be able to afford tickets to shows." His 2024 tour was sold via Ticketmaster, with Bryan acknowledging that "one guy can't change the whole system.")
Deb Peifer Relationship and Split
Following his divorce, Bryan moved on with Peifer. The twosome marked their one-year anniversary in January 2023 but called it quits four months later.
"For transparency and with respect I am letting everyone know Debra and me went our separate ways about a week and a half ago," Bryan tweeted in May 2023. "Things are mutual between us, we're leaving with plenty memories and good times. I beg so much that everyone respects her and my privacy through a hard time."
Shortly before he announced his split from Peifer, Bryan crossed paths with LaPaglia at the 2023 ACM Awards. The Barstool Sports personality later made a surprise appearance on stage during one of Bryan's June 2023 concerts at Forest Hills Stadium in Queens, singing "Revival" with a handful of other celebrity guests. One month later, LaPaglia confirmed their relationship.
"It's fun, it's casual, and yeah, I just wanted to address it because the whole internet is freaking the f--- out and people are doing s---," she said on her "PlanBri Uncut" podcast. "And yeah, that’s really it. Just hanging out, having some fun."
Grammy Awards and Industry Recognition
In 2023, Bryan earned his first Grammy nomination in the Best Country Solo Performance category for "Something in the Orange" but lost to Willie Nelson 's "Live Forever." He was later nominated for Best Country Album for 2024's Zach Bryan . His collaboration with Kacey Musgraves , "I Remember Everything," was also nominated that year for Best Country Song and Best Country Duo/Group Performance, winning the latter.
Bryan has also won four Billboard Music Awards, one Academy of Country Music Award and one People's Choice Country Awards, earning nods at the CMT Music Awards, Country Music Association Awards and People's Choice Awards.
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Along with his critical and mainstream success, Bryan has earned the respect of his peers. Jelly Roll referred to Bryan as "the greatest of this generation" via X in October 2024, and 50 Cent previously hailed the songwriter as "the best new everything in country music."
John Mayer , who's featured on Bryan's album The Great American Bar Scene , gushed over Bryan after their collaboration was released in July 2024. "I always knew this song Zach wrote was special. I had no idea how beautiful, powerful and deep an album it would be a part of. I'm stunned," Mayer tweeted. "I'm blessed to have been able to fulfill my dreams of making music. What I never saw coming: to be asked to play with an artist as deeply tapped in as @zachlanebryan is. Thank you for inviting me into your dream-coming-true."
Bryan has also worked with Springsteen, Maggie Rogers , Noah Kahan , Bon Iver , The War and Treaty and more.
Arrest and Social Media Controversies
Bryan made headlines in September 2023 when he was arrested in Oklahoma on an obstruction of investigation charge. He was released on bail shortly after his arrest and subsequently addressed the ordeal via social media.
"Today I had an incident with the Oklahoma Highway Patrol. Emotions got the best of me and I was out of line in the things I said," he wrote at the time. "I support law enforcement as much as anyone can, I was just frustrated in the moment, it was unlike me and I apologize. They brought me to jail, and there is a mug shot of me floating around."
In a separate post, Bryan acknowledged that the authorities "didn't play favorites" due to his star status. "I was an idiot today and my decisions did not reflect who I was as a person and I just wanna make that clear and I should've been smarter about it," he added, insisting that he doesn't "think [he's] above the law" but owning up to "being disrespectful."
Bryan's mugshot was later used as the cover of Spotify's "Outlaw" playlist.
Along with legal troubles, Bryan has raised eyebrows for his social media activity. In September 2024, Bryan was called out for tweeting "Kanye > Taylor... Who's with me" but quickly backtracked his remarks .
"Guys I love Taylor," Bryan wrote. "[I] was listening to TTPD last night and 'Thank You Aimee' came on and I drunkenly tweeted that about Kanye. If anyone took it serious please know I love both artists a lot and think we're in a really beautiful time of music."
In a followup statement, Bryan apologized "to any Taylor fans I pissed off or let down," revealing that he was "going through a hard time" and "projecting a little" when he wrote his initial post. "Don't drink and tweet. Don't drink and tweet!!" he concluded.
Bryan has been known to clap back at trolls over the years, previously slamming "pieces of trash" online who alleged, "Zach Bryan is what happens when you don't discipline your kids."
"Don't ever insult my parents, don't ever insult anyone's parents," he wrote in an August 2024 Instagram Story.
Brianna Chickenfry Breakup
Bryan announced in October 2024 that he and LaPaglia called it quits after more than one year of dating. "Addressing something: Brianna and me have broken up with eachother [sic] and I respect and love her with every ounce of my heart," he wrote via his Instagram Story. "She has loved me unconditionally for a very long time and for that I'll always thank her."
Bryan added, "I've had an incredibly hard year personally and struggled through some pretty severe things. I thought it would be beneficial for both of us to go out different ways. I am not perfect and never will be. ... With everything I am and to anyone I let down, I am sorry. I try my best in everything. I failed people that love me and mostly myself."
LaPaglia subsequently shared in her own Instagram Story statement that she was "blindsided" by the breakup and would be stepping away from social media in order "to heal privately." Later that day, she addressed the split in a YouTube video.
"How can you, like, give every ounce of yourself to someone and then, like, be discarded of in a few days?" she said. "It's really, really heartbreaking, and I don't want to talk about details right now."
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