Zach Bryan

Biography

Zachary Lane Bryan (born April 2, 1996) is an American singer-songwriter. Born in Yokosuka, Japan, and raised in Oologah, Oklahoma, he released two self-produced studio albums, DeAnn×DeAnn24 August 2019 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 12 tracks1Flying or Crying2:502Hope Again3:013God Speed4:134Don’t Give Up on Me3:235Doing Fine3:046Letting Someone Go4:007Shivers Down Spines3:008Snow2:599Man Thats Never Known You3:0610Moon in Oklahoma3:0011Condemned2:5512Sweet DeAnn3:25 (2019) and Elisabeth×Elisabeth8 May 2020 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 18 tracks1Come as You Are4:462From a Lover’s Point of View3:053Driving3:244Heading South3:305Cold Blooded3:256Mine2:587Leaving3:278Codeine Pills (Part One)3:169Anita (Part Two)3:4410Hopefully3:5811Messed Up Kid4:2012Loom2:4413Me and Mine3:0914Old Man4:0215A Boy Like You4:4816Elisabeth3:2017Washington Lilacs2:4818Revival3:41 (2020), before signing with Warner Records to release his third album and major label debut American Heartbreak×American Heartbreak20 May 2022 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 34 tracks · 2 discsDisc 11Late July2:582Something in the Orange (Z&E’s version)4:143Heavy Eyes3:114Mine Again3:445Happy Instead4:096Right Now the Best3:107The Outskirts3:188Younger Years3:259Cold, Damn Vampires4:5210Tishomingo3:0911She’s Alright3:4912You Are My Sunshine2:5813Darling3:5814Ninth Cloud3:2415Oklahoma City4:0116Sun to Me2:4317Highway Boys3:4018Whiskey Fever3:33Disc 21Billy Stay5:172Sober Side of Sorry3:333High Beams3:214The Good I’ll Do3:315Someday (Maggie’s)4:266Poems and Closing Time2:417From Austin3:278If She Wants a Cowboy3:129Corinthians (Proctor’s)3:5110Open the Gate3:5511Half Grown3:2712No Cure2:4213’68 Fastback3:1314Blue3:3915Morning Time3:4616This Road I Know3:25 (2022), which peaked at number five on the Billboard 200 and was led by the Billboard Hot 100-top ten single "Something in the Orange×Something in the Orange22 April 2022 · SingleSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 4 tracks1Something in the Orange3:482Something in the Orange (Z&E’s version)4:143From Austin3:274Highway Boys3:40". His self-titled fourth album (2023) debuted atop the Billboard 200, while its lead single, "I Remember Everything" (featuring Kacey Musgraves), peaked atop the Billboard Hot 100, Hot Country Songs, and Hot Rock & Alternative Songs charts simultaneously, also earning him a Grammy Award for Best Country Duo/Group Performance. His fifth studio album, The Great American Bar Scene×The Great American Bar Scene4 July 2024 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 19 tracks · 2 discsDisc 1A1Lucky Enough (poem)2:42A2Mechanical Bull3:28A3The Great American Bar Scene3:36A4283:53A5American Nights3:38B1Oak Island3:59B2Purple Gas3:30B3BoonsB4The Way BackDisc 2C1Memphis; The Blues3:09C2Like Ida3:35C3Bass Boat3:36C4Better Days3:32C5Towers2:50D1Sandpaper3:36D2Northern Thunder3:30D3Funny Man3:16D5Pink Skies3:49D6Bathwater1:40 (2024), peaked at number two on the Billboard 200, and his sixth, With Heaven on Top (2026), debuted at number one.
Throughout his career, Bryan has won several awards, including an Academy of Country Music Award, a Grammy Award and four Billboard Music Awards. He has sold over 30 million albums and singles, according to the RIAA.

Early life

Bryan was born in Yokosuka, Japan, where his parents were stationed as part of a U.S. Navy deployment. He is the son of Dewayne Bryan and Annette DeAnn (née Mullen) Bryan, and has a sister, Mackenzie. DeAnn battled alcohol abuse. When Bryan was in the eighth grade, his family moved to Oologah, Oklahoma. His parents divorced when he was 12. He started writing songs at the age of 14.
Continuing a family tradition, Bryan was an active-duty member of the United States Navy for eight years, enlisting at the age of 17. Bryan attained the rate/rating of Aviation Ordnanceman Second Class (AO2). He used his spare time while in the Navy to write music for his enjoyment. He finished his service in the Navy in 2021 at the age of 25 to pursue his career in music.

2017–2020: Beginnings, DeAnn and Elisabeth

Bryan started uploading his music to YouTube in 2017, with his friends recording him performing using his iPhone. Bryan's first song uploaded to YouTube was the single "God Speed" which ended up being a track on his debut album. Many of the songs Bryan would upload to his YouTube were written and recorded by him while serving in the Navy. Bryan uploaded 16 songs of varying popularity onto his YouTube channel before "Heading South×Heading South30 September 2019 · SingleSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 1 track1Heading South2:52" went viral. The song was recorded outside his Navy barracks.
His debut album, DeAnn×DeAnn24 August 2019 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 12 tracks1Flying or Crying2:502Hope Again3:013God Speed4:134Don’t Give Up on Me3:235Doing Fine3:046Letting Someone Go4:007Shivers Down Spines3:008Snow2:599Man Thats Never Known You3:0610Moon in Oklahoma3:0011Condemned2:5512Sweet DeAnn3:25, was dedicated to his late mother and released on August 24, 2019. It was written in two months and recorded with his friends in an Airbnb located in Jacksonville, Florida. The album consisted of 12 tracks, many of which had been previously uploaded to his YouTube. Bryan's first public concert was in Medford, Oregon, in October 2019. He has since made his debut at the historic Ryman Auditorium, among other noteworthy appearances. A second album, Elisabeth×Elisabeth8 May 2020 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 18 tracks1Come as You Are4:462From a Lover’s Point of View3:053Driving3:244Heading South3:305Cold Blooded3:256Mine2:587Leaving3:278Codeine Pills (Part One)3:169Anita (Part Two)3:4410Hopefully3:5811Messed Up Kid4:2012Loom2:4413Me and Mine3:0914Old Man4:0215A Boy Like You4:4816Elisabeth3:2017Washington Lilacs2:4818Revival3:41, was released on May 8, 2020. He recorded the album in a repurposed barn behind his home in Washington. The album is named after his wife at the time (div. 2021). The album contains 19 tracks, including the tracks "Heading South" and "Revival". Bryan released his first EP, Quiet, Heavy Dreams×Quiet, Heavy Dreams27 November 2020 · EPSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 6 tracks1Let You Down3:292Crooked Teeth3:173November Air4:034Birmingham3:265Traveling Man3:176Quiet, Heavy Dreams2:54, on November 27, 2020.

2021–2023: American Heartbreak and Zach Bryan

On April 10, 2021, Bryan made his Grand Ole Opry debut. He later signed a deal with Warner Records to release his music. On October 14, 2021, Bryan announced that he was honorably discharged from the U.S. Navy after eight years of service to pursue his career in music just ahead of his nationwide Fall 2021 "Ain't For Tamin' Tour". He said, "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."
On January 25, 2022, Bryan announced that he would release his major-label debut, a triple album, American Heartbreak×American Heartbreak20 May 2022 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 34 tracks · 2 discsDisc 11Late July2:582Something in the Orange (Z&E’s version)4:143Heavy Eyes3:114Mine Again3:445Happy Instead4:096Right Now the Best3:107The Outskirts3:188Younger Years3:259Cold, Damn Vampires4:5210Tishomingo3:0911She’s Alright3:4912You Are My Sunshine2:5813Darling3:5814Ninth Cloud3:2415Oklahoma City4:0116Sun to Me2:4317Highway Boys3:4018Whiskey Fever3:33Disc 21Billy Stay5:172Sober Side of Sorry3:333High Beams3:214The Good I’ll Do3:315Someday (Maggie’s)4:266Poems and Closing Time2:417From Austin3:278If She Wants a Cowboy3:129Corinthians (Proctor’s)3:5110Open the Gate3:5511Half Grown3:2712No Cure2:4213’68 Fastback3:1314Blue3:3915Morning Time3:4616This Road I Know3:25, on May 20, 2022. On April 22, 2022, Bryan released the hit single "Something in the Orange×Something in the Orange22 April 2022 · SingleSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 4 tracks1Something in the Orange3:482Something in the Orange (Z&E’s version)4:143From Austin3:274Highway Boys3:40", which became a mainstream hit and is regarded as one of Bryan's most recognizable and identifiable songs. The song was Bryan's breakthrough onto the Billboard Hot 100 debuting at position 55 on May 7, 2022, and peaking at 10. American Heartbreak debuted at number five on the U.S. Billboard 200 with over 70,000 album-equivalent units, marking the biggest first week for a country album in 2022. The album consisted of 34 tracks including "Something in the Orange – Z&E's Version" a more raw and acoustic version of the hit song.
On July 15, 2022, Bryan released his second EP, Summertime Blues×Summertime Blues15 July 2022 · EPSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 9 tracks1Quittin’ Time3:412Motorcycle Drive By2:423Summertime Blues3:014Oklahoma Smokeshow3:325Jamie3:406Twenty So3:197Us Then2:468Matt and Audie2:079All the Time3:20, which featured collaborator Charles Wesley Godwin. The EP contained nine tracks including the charting song of "Oklahoma Smokeshow" which peaked at number 75. On September 8, 2022, Bryan released the single "Burn, Burn, Burn×Burn, Burn, Burn8 September 2022 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 1 track1Burn, Burn, Burn4:28" followed by the single "Starved×Starved11 October 2022 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 3 tracks1Starved4:432Starved (demo)3:443Starved (Live from Detroit)6:15" on October 10. These were followed by the two singles "Fifth of May" and "The Greatest Day of My Life×The Greatest Day of My Life11 November 2022 · SingleSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 2 tracks1Fifth of May2:582The Greatest Day of My Life3:59" on November 11, 2022. On December 25, 2022, he released a live album called All My Homies Hate Ticketmaster (Live from Red Rocks)×All My Homies Hate Ticketmaster (live from Red Rocks)25 December 2022 · Album · LiveSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 24 tracks1Country Roads3:292Open the Gate4:133God Speed4:144Highway Boys3:395Condemned3:116Oklahoma City4:317Quittin’ Time3:578No Cure2:539Sweet DeAnn3:0510Heading South3:2911The Good I’ll Do3:2112Flying or Crying3:0213From Austin3:1614Traveling Man3:4015’68 Fastback3:2516Snow3:1017Something in the Orange4:3218Oklahoma Smokeshow3:3419Billy Stay4:4120Jamie3:3321Heavy Eyes3:5422Burn, Burn, Burn4:1423November Air4:2624Revival11:57, recorded at Red Rocks Amphitheatre. Bryan's single "Something In The Orange" was nominated for Best Country Solo Performance at the 65th Annual Grammy Awards marking Bryan's first career Grammy Awards nomination.
On January 27, 2023, Bryan collaborated with Maggie Rogers and released "Dawns×Dawns27 January 2023 · SingleSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 1 track1Dawns4:51", his first single of the year. The single reached a peak of 42 on the Billboard Hot 100. In May 2023, Bryan received the Academy of Country Music Award for New Male Artist of the Year. On August 25, 2023, Bryan released his self-titled fourth album. It debuted at number one on the Billboard 200. The album also contained Bryan's first number one single, "I Remember Everything", featuring Kacey Musgraves, which debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 at the top spot. All sixteen tracks of the album charted on the Billboard Hot 100 with "I Remember Everything", "Hey Driver×Hey Driver24 August 2023 · SingleSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 1 track1Hey Driver3:47" (featuring The War and Treaty), "Spotless×Spotless24 August 2023 · SingleSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 1 track1Spotless2:49" (featuring The Lumineers), "East Side of Sorrow", and "Tourniquet" all appearing in the top 20.
On September 22, 2023, he released his third EP, Boys of Faith×Boys of Faith21 September 2023 · EPSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 5 tracks1Nine Ball2:492Sarah’s Place3:343Boys of Faith2:504Deep Satin3:315Pain, Sweet, Pain3:15, which included songs featuring fellow artists Noah Kahan and Bon Iver. All five tracks on the EP charted on the Billboard Hot 100 with "Sarah's Place" featuring Kahan peaking at 14. Bryan was named Billboard's top new artist of 2023 for his increased popularity through the year, such as his first appearance at the top of both the Billboard 200 and Billboard Hot 100. At the 66th Annual Grammy Awards, Bryan was nominated for three categories. His self-titled fourth album was nominated for Best Country Album. "I Remember Everything" featuring Musgraves was nominated for the Best Country Song. The song was also nominated and won the Best Country Duo/Group Performance marking Bryan's first Grammy award win of his career.

2024–present: The Great American Bar Scene and With Heaven on Top

In early 2024, Bryan began teasing and announcing his fifth studio album, The Great American Bar Scene×The Great American Bar Scene4 July 2024 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 19 tracks · 2 discsDisc 1A1Lucky Enough (poem)2:42A2Mechanical Bull3:28A3The Great American Bar Scene3:36A4283:53A5American Nights3:38B1Oak Island3:59B2Purple Gas3:30B3BoonsB4The Way BackDisc 2C1Memphis; The Blues3:09C2Like Ida3:35C3Bass Boat3:36C4Better Days3:32C5Towers2:50D1Sandpaper3:36D2Northern Thunder3:30D3Funny Man3:16D5Pink Skies3:49D6Bathwater1:40. On May 24, 2024, Bryan released the lead single from the album, "Pink Skies×Pink Skies24 May 2024 · SingleSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 1 track1Pink Skies3:15". The single would debut at number 6 on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming the second highest charting single of his career up until this point. Bryan released the second single from the album titled "Purple Gas×Purple Gas7 June 2024 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 1 track1Purple Gas3:00" which featured Noeline Hofmann, on June 7. The album was released on July 4, 2024. It contains 19 tracks including songs featuring artists Noeline Hofmann, John Moreland, John Mayer, Bruce Springsteen, and Watchhouse.
In early November 2024, following his breakup with Barstool Sports podcaster Brianna LaPaglia, Bryan released two songs, "High Road×High Road7 November 2024 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 1 track1High Road3:20" and "This World's a Giant". Both songs were commercial successes; "High Road" peaked at number 28 in Canada and number 29 in the US and Ireland, while "This World's a Giant" peaked at number 32 in Ireland, number 41 in Canada, and number 49 in the US. On December 20, 2024, roughly two years after he released All My Homies Hate Ticketmaster (Live from Red Rocks), Bryan released 24 (Live), a compilation live album recorded during his 2024 Quittin' Time Tour.
After the NFC divisional playoff game between the Philadelphia Eagles and the Los Angeles Rams on January 19, 2025, which the Eagles won, Bryan announced he would release a new song, "Blue Jean Baby×Blue Jean Baby27 January 2025 · SingleSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 1 track1Blue Jean Baby2:12", if the Eagles won the 2025 NFC Championship on January 26; the Eagles beat the Washington Commanders 55–23. "Blue Jean Baby" was released at midnight on January 27. In an Instagram post announcing the release of the song, Bryan promised to release an EP and an album by the end of the year. He headlined Stagecoach Festival on April 25, 2025. On July 2, he released the songs "Streets of London×Streets of London2 July 2025 · SingleSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 3 tracks1Streets of London3:092River Washed Hair4:223A Song For You3:37", "River Washed Hair", and "A Song For You" as a three-song single. On July 18, he collaborated with Gabriella Rose and released “Madeline×Madeline18 July 2025 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 1 track1Madeline2:25”. He released “Bowery×Bowery8 August 2025 · SingleSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 1 track1Bowery3:36”, a collaboration with Kings of Leon, on August 8.
On September 27, 2025, Bryan performed a concert at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor, Michigan, breaking the record for the largest attendance at a ticketed concert by a single headlining act in the United States. He played to an announced crowd of 112,408. It was only the second concert in the 98-year history of the venue, and the first by a headlining act. He broke the previous record set by George Strait on June 15, 2024, when Strait played a concert at Kyle Field at Texas A&M University in College Station, Texas, to 110,905 fans in attendance.
On January 9, 2026, Bryan released his sixth studio album, With Heaven on Top×With Heaven on Top9 January 2026 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 25 tracks1Down, Down, Stream1:592Runny Eggs3:523Appetite3:054DeAnn’s Denim2:415Say Why2:236Drowning3:057Santa Fe2:548Skin2:559Dry Deserts2:3110Bad News3:1611South and Pine3:2112Cannonball3:5713Slicked Back3:5114Anyways3:2315If They Come Lookin’2:2716Rivers and Creeks3:3517Plastic Cigarette3:0518You Can Still Come Home3:4119Aeroplane2:2020Always Willin’4:0521Miles3:3022All Good Things Past4:0223Camper2:1524Sundown Girls2:0225With Heaven on Top3:53, which debuted atop the Billboard 200 making this his second album to peak at number 1 on the chart. Three days later Bryan released a stripped-back, acoustic version of the album.

Personal life

In 2013, Bryan enlisted in the U.S. Navy. He served as an Aviation Ordnanceman in Florida as well as Washington, and served tours in Bahrain and Djibouti before receiving an honorable discharge to pursue his musical career. Bryan's mother died in 2016.
On September 7, 2023, he was arrested by the Oklahoma Highway Patrol for obstruction in Vinita, Oklahoma, and released on bail.
Bryan completed his bachelor's degree in psychology in the fall of 2023 while touring and creating an album, fulfilling a promise made to his late mother.
In 2025, Bryan purchased the former Saint Jean Baptiste Church in Lowell, Massachusetts to enable The Jack Kerouac Foundation to build a museum to honor the novelist and poet. Bryan has cited Kerouac's works as an important influence in his life.
In 2026 Bryan bought the original manuscript of Jack Kerouac's On the Road at auction.

Relationships

Bryan married Rose Madden in July 2020; the pair dissolved their marriage in 2021. Bryan was in a relationship with Deb Peifer from 2022 until May 2023.
He started dating Brianna LaPaglia, co-host of the BFFs podcast published by Barstool Sports, in July 2023. Bryan announced his breakup with LaPaglia on October 22, 2024, via an Instagram Story. LaPaglia was blindsided by the breakup, as she shared in a story on her own Instagram. She later claimed Bryan blocked her after the breakup, and that he emotionally abused her and offered her $12 million to sign a non-disclosure agreement after the breakup. In response to the breakup with LaPaglia, BFFs co-hosts Dave Portnoy and Josh Richards released a song about Bryan titled "Smallest Man", which was subsequently removed from several platforms due to takedown requests from Bryan and Richards' label Warner Music Group.
In January 2026, he married Samantha Leonard.

Activism and political views

In October 2025, Bryan posted a snippet of a recording of a song called "Bad News" with lyrics apparently critical of the tactics used by ICE agents deployed in cities around the country. Supporters of the Donald Trump administration were reportedly displeased with the song. Bryan later related a statement through social media saying the intention of the song had been "misconstrued". Among the ensuing controversy, Bryan has attempted to explain that the song had not intended to be partisan or "take sides".
On 2 and 3 October 2026, Bryan wore a Free Palestine shirt during performances at Gillette Stadium.