I’ll say this, and some of the readers of this column already know it: I’ve been a fan of country singer Zach Bryan’s. I think there’s some merit to his music, and some of his lyrics speak to the 21st-century American condition in ways that a lot of corporate-driven pop music isn’t capable of doing.
He’s a little on the dour side for a widespread commercial breakout, but still, there is some value in Bryan’s music.
That doesn’t really matter much anymore for a sizable chunk of his fans, though.
Because Zach Bryan put this out a few days ago, which has set his fan base aflame against him…
All hell broke loose among country fans over the lyrics to “Bad News,” and especially the reference to cops as “cocky m-f’ers” and ICE is “gonna come bust down your door, try to build a house no one builds no more, but I got a telephone, Kids are all scared and all alone.”
And not surprisingly so.
Very few people listening to country are interested in a rich recording artist who wants to whine about law enforcement officers doing their job right now. (RELATED: Abusing Border Patrol Agents: Echoes of Vietnam)
Not when we’re in the middle of a situation in which all of our cities are disgusting cesspools of criminality and behavioral pathology, which make police officers into frontline troops in a war to preserve civilization. (RELATED: Want to Suppress Crime? Start With Rochester, NY)
Not when there are people who share Zach Bryan’s politics taking potshots at ICE officers with sniper rifles or trying to ram them with vehicles. (RELATED: The Four Rings of Terror — How Violence Targets Conservative America)
And especially not when the vast majority of the people ICE is busting down the door of are MS-13 and Tren de Aragua gangsters, sex traffickers, and other criminals. (RELATED: Meet the Criminals Anti-ICE Protesters Are Fighting to Shield)
As an aside, because I saw some grumbling in the comments under my last column after I referred to illegal criminals, and some of you groused that they’re criminals simply for showing up here illegally. Yes, I’m aware of that. I’m using economy of language to note that not only are the vast majority of current ICE arrestees illegal for having denied the American people our due process rights in selecting which immigrants we want and which we don’t, but they’re also criminals on top of that. Either they had criminal records before they came here, or they’ve engaged in criminality while here, or both.
So Zach Bryan isn’t just going on some unwatchable late-night variety show like Jimmy Kimmel or Stephen Colbert and making a shitty comment about ICE; he actually produced a song that all but leads with ICE as some sort of Gestapo that scares all the kids.
A lot goes into producing a song, you know. This took malice aforethought.
And so reactions like these are neither unreasonable nor out of the blue…
Zach Bryan looks like he’s had enough soy for one lifetime.
— Geoffrey Chaucer (@GeoffreyCh49032) October 8, 2025
#FOff TOAD. We are DONE with your 🤡💩‼️
Country Singer @zachbryan Backtracks After Backlash, Now Says Message in Anti-ICE Song Being ‘Misconstrued’https://t.co/aM8aydeREO— Maytag99 (@pixee99) October 8, 2025
And there was this recital of one of Bryan’s lesser moments…
‘@CMT Zach Bryan shows he not only hates cops but a conceited asshole. Says “I’m a famous musician” and won’t give cop address. In song calls cops “cocky motherfuckers.” @zachbryan handcuffed after speeding in Oklahom… https://t.co/Yhu6qJJhIp via @YouTube
— Larry Prescott (@JinnRunner) October 8, 2025
And this one…
He did this, too. 👇 And is also apparently a serial cheater. pic.twitter.com/FI0LdHbnI1
— Jessie’s Girl (@Photini1967) October 7, 2025
John Rich wasn’t amused…
Singer John Rich Calls Out Zach Bryan Over His Song Bashing ICE https://t.co/5T0kstsdzz
— Dallys1515 💋 (@Dallys1515) October 8, 2025
Benny Johnson caught up to DHS Secretary Kristi Noem and asked her about it, and she torched Bryan about as thoroughly as she could…
BREAKING: Secretary Kristi Noem flames country singer Zach Bryan.
I just asked Noem about the new Zach Bryan song attacking ICE. Noem went scorched-earth calling the woke singer “completely disrespectful” to the law enforcement that protect him.
Secretary Noem: “I hope Zach… pic.twitter.com/MPXuVshPnM
— Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) October 7, 2025
DHS then trolled Bryan with a video clip of ICE and other DHS officers arresting illegals and Antifa rioters, set to a snippet of one of Bryan’s more notable songs…
We’re having an All Night Revival pic.twitter.com/o7q8DExPra
— Homeland Security (@DHSgov) October 7, 2025
This led Bryan to issue a “sorry if you’re offended”-style statement on Instagram, leaning, among other things, on the fact that he spent some time in the Navy…
In a statement posted on an Instagram Story, Bryan wrote that “Bad News” was written months ago and that people need the “full context” of the song.
“This shows you how divisive a narrative can be when shoved down our throats through social media,” Bryan said. “This song is about how much I love this country and everyone in it more than anything. When you hear the rest of the song, you will understand the full context that hits on both sides of the aisle. Everyone using this now as a weapon is only proving how devastatingly divided we all are. We need to find our way back.”
He continued, “I served this country, I love this country and the song itself is about all of us coming out of this divided space. I wasn’t speaking as a politician or some greater-than-thou a–hole, just a 29-year-old man who is just as confused as everyone else. To see how much s— it stirred up makes me not only embarrassed but kind of scared. Left wing or right wing we’re all one bird and American. To be clear I’m on neither of these radical sides. To all those disappointed in me on either side of whatever you believe in just know I’m trying my best too and we all say things that are misconstrued sometimes.”
Yeah, well…
Nothing I’ve heard of this song dumps on illegals or Antifa or AOC like the first two verses that trash the cops and ICE. Maybe that’s the “unreleased” part of “Bad News.”
If Zach Bryan thinks he’s getting unfair treatment, then maybe his real beef is with his producers and record label, who stirred up this controversy in thinking that turning him into the Bud Light or Cracker Barrel of country music was a good idea. And if that’s so, he ought to say so.
It’s pretty apparent that isn’t so, and whatever criticisms of Zach Bryan’s lefty friends are in the song will turn out to be a lot more muted than scathing.
The insult here is that somehow we’re to believe Zach Bryan is de novo. Like the Right hasn’t had to put up with being insulted and trashed by poorly-behaved theater kids like Zach Bryan for decades, and we’re all paranoids and whiners for rejecting him over a song.
No. And screw you.
He’s a pretty good country singer. He isn’t good enough to dictate our social attitudes to us. If Garth Brooks wasn’t good enough, Zach Bryan sure as hell isn’t. (RELATED: Jimmy Carter’s Favorite Song ‘Imagine’ Sung at His Funeral)
Bryan also took to social media to whine about how he’s been under a microscope of late…
“The last few months of my life I’ve been scrutinized by more people than I ever thought possible. I feel like I’ve tried my hardest in so many ways and it’s so had to see where my bearings even are anymore. Been falling off a cliff while trying to grow wings at the same time,” Bryan wrote. “I am SO proud to have served in a country where we can all speak freely and converse amongst each other without getting doxxed or accosted on the internet or worse; the violence and heartbreak we’ve faced in the last few months! God speed ol sons I’m out!”
Here’s the thing: Zach Bryan isn’t a politician, and he’s not a pundit.
He’s not exactly the most informed or qualified to do either one. Instead, he’s an entertainer.
So go entertain.
What he’s finding out is something Michael Jordan was smart enough to know without having to be beaten about the head and shoulders first, which is, as Jordan once said, “Republicans buy sneakers, too.” Zach Bryan’s fan base was more MAGA than not, and he’s dumped all over them.
Yes, he deserves the Dixie Chicks treatment he’s going to get for this. And no, those lyrics aren’t “misconstrued,” they’re stupid and poorly written if they’re intended to persuade anybody of anything.
If Zach Bryan wants to be relevant as a social commentator, he’s going to have to accept accountability. Which is to say that when his take sucks, and when he’s wrong, he’s going to have to accept the backlash and own it.
Not whine about it while you hide behind pablum your publicist posts on Instagram.
So that’s enough of Zach Bryan.
Bye, Zach. Enjoy oblivion.
READ MORE from Scott McKay:
It’s Good v. Evil. It’s Always Been Good v. Evil.
The Sombrero Shutdown Needs Some Time to Deliver Its Benefits
Emotional Terrorism Doesn’t Work Anymore, and That’s a Real Problem for the Left
