Zach Bryan Deletes Social Media Accounts. But Don’t Panic.
Stay calm folks.
No, Zach Bryan is not dead. No, he hasn’t quit music. No, he wasn’t cancelled or anything else traumatic. And no, he hasn’t turned in his name in for a number to become an international crime-fighting anti-terrorist extra-juridical assassin for the CIA, though all of these conclusions and more have been drawn by the fact that soon after releasing two new Dave Cobb-produced tracks under the heading of the Studio A Recordings on February 19th, the viral songwriter disappeared entirely from social media.
Yes, Zach Bryan has deleted (or at least discontinued) his Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook “like” pages, sending many of his fans into a panic. But no, there’s no drama tied to it at the moment. “Zach is writing an album so he’s focusing on that and stepping back from the public eye for a bit, nothing crazy,” Zach’s manager Danny Kang confirms.
What made the sudden disappearance so alarming for many is just how much of a creature of social media Zach Bryan has been heretofore. His Twitter account was very much the epicenter of the songwriter’s meteoric rise, and where he would regularly post videos of himself performing, and they would go viral on the format. That’s how a relative-unknown broke out and became one of the hottest names in independent country and roots around the release of his debut album DeAnn in 2019.
But as many of Zach Bryan’s dedicated fans know, he’s a full time Navy enlistee who is susceptible to regular deployments and often works 12 hours a day. The fact that he’s been able to not just launch and maintain a career in songwriting, but dramatically excel while also keeping up with his Navy commitments is a testament to his talent, hard work, and dedication.
Zach seemed a little dejected recently when he posted something on Twitter denouncing the riots at the Capitol in early January and received some push back. Afterwards he took a break from social media until announcing the two new Dave Cobb-produced songs. Perhaps he saw then is when he saw social media as a distraction from the bigger picture.
Of course Zach Bryan isn’t the only music artist to wipe his social media presence. Sturgill Simpson continues to only operate through the occasional Instagram post, and has no Twitter presence. Taylor Swift and others have disappeared on social media to prepare for big announcements previously.
So don’t worry, Zach Bryan will resurface when he’s ready. Until then, he’s given all of us a pretty dramatic amount of output over the last couple of years to tide us over.
February 25, 2021 @ 11:26 am
This dude is the future. I haven’t ever seen my generation this excited about an underground artist.
February 26, 2021 @ 2:36 pm
While we’re on the subject of up and comers, if anyone hasn’t checked out Cole Chaney Live From Red Barn Radio. You’re missing out and you should remedy that quickly.
February 27, 2021 @ 6:52 pm
Wow dude is real. Thanks for them recommendation.
February 25, 2021 @ 11:31 am
I can’t get into his music. Anyone else?!? I know everyone online seems to think he’s the next big thing to hit alternative country / americana. I appreciate his military service and he does have a decent voice, but it sounds so generic to me for some reason. I wish I could say something more positive, but his music career has been a snoozefest for me personally.
February 25, 2021 @ 11:54 am
I agree, if he had a backing band like Tyler’s he would be one of my favorites. But the solo acoustic stuff just doesn’t capture me.
March 2, 2021 @ 3:15 am
Have you guys ever grew up in a small
Town with nothing to do like
Him or Tyler Childers? The things that make them good are the words and feeling they put into the songs. It’s not about the bands it’s about the hurt and feelings that they put into them that grab you not the acoustic versions or the backing bad Tyler Childers got big from his acoustic shows, growing up about 45 minutes away from Tyler he means every word he puts into the first two albums that blew him up it wasn’t the bands. You’re just being subjective to your own tastes verses what they’re putting out into the world and the numbers they’re creating. I personally have watched both of them grow from very small numbers in views and listens to being some of the most listened to artists in America today. The numbers will keep growing and the fan base as well as the musical talents
March 9, 2021 @ 8:16 am
Thank you for saying that, I agree 100%. Its about the stories they’re telling. If you grew up poor, working class, and rural, especially in the south or w family from the south, chances are both Tyler and Zach’s songs will speak to your heart. Having family who’ve struggled w opiate addiction, and a son who joined the service to “see the world”, I can’t listen to either Nose to the Grindstone or November Air without balling my head off. Those boys know of what they speak.
February 25, 2021 @ 11:56 am
I love him. I think he’s going to be the genres next superstar.
February 25, 2021 @ 5:31 pm
I have the exact same take, and all the “thumbs up” on your comment give me reason to believe that you and I aren’t the crazy ones. The hype here is way ahead of anything he has put out thus far, but that’s Twitter and the internet for you. I think that’s ultimately not going to be good for his career….that is, getting expectations way up there before he has put out anything that’s actually worthy of all the hype. And as I have said before, in my mind much of this was driven by industry folks (and newly minted Childers fans) seeing an opportunity to get in early on Childers-like lightning in a bottle with this kid. It will be interesting to see how it all shakes out longer term.
February 25, 2021 @ 5:53 pm
The success of Zach Bryan is not something that’s hypothetical, or something that is to be considered as a possibility for the future. If people don’t find his music appealing, that’s a matter of taste, and completely understandable. But over the last two years, there’s arguably been nobody bigger in independent country and roots music than Zach Bryan, except Tyler Childers. Zach Bryan has amassed incredible numbers, while receiving little or no attention from the press. He’s definitely been bigger than Jason Isbell, or Margo Price. For example, on Spotify at the moment, Zach Bryan is currently at 1.2 million average listeners per month. Jason Isbell is at 663,000. Of course, popularity doesn’t denote quality. But the conversation around Zach Bryan shouldn’t be “Gee, we’ll see how this thing develops.” It’s “this dude is massive, I wonder where it goes next.”
February 25, 2021 @ 8:21 pm
I’m referring to him living up to all the PR and online hype. Being a solid artist and able to deliver on all fronts isn’t simply streaming numbers.
Can he deliver live? Can he put together and lead a band? Can he deliver in the studio? Can he put out a proper, well-rounded album with songs that aren’t essentially all the same? That’s what I’m talking about.
It’s clear that he has relatively blown up on the stream / click froth. That’s obvious…..but that and $2.50 will buy you a cup of coffee in my view.
February 26, 2021 @ 10:32 am
1.2m listeners a month will net you more than that, haha.
If all of those people only listen to one song each (we don’t) and they only listen to him on Spotify (we don’t), he’s making over $50k a year on stuff he recorded in his barn with a Craigslist piano.
(Also…if you think DeAnn, Codeine Pills, Anita, and Revival all sound the same, I really don’t know what to tell ya).
February 25, 2021 @ 8:54 pm
Yeah I’m also on team ‘solo acoustic is kinda boring and not what I listen to country music for”. His super emotional, earnest singing is great, but there’s only so much solo rhythm guitar I can deal with before I wander off.
February 26, 2021 @ 9:59 am
1.2m listeners a month will net you more than that, haha.
If all of those people only listen to one song each (we don’t) and they only listen to him on Spotify (we don’t), he’s making over $50k a year on stuff he recorded in his barn with a Craigslist piano.
(Also…if you think DeAnn, Codeine Pills, Anita, and Revival all sound the same, I really don’t know what to tell ya).
February 26, 2021 @ 10:10 am
assuming you’re talking to me, what’s the point of your comment? Millions of people also like bro country. That doesn’t mean I personally have to. For the record I also dislike John prine and the Beatles and Bob Dylan, and I completely get that millions of other people don’t share my opinion.
Personally, to me, in my own opinion, etc etc: solo acoustic singer-songwriter is its own genre that is only tangentially related to country and much more closely related to folksingers like Bob Dylan.
I personally like country music in a band setting where it’s an interplay between a group of people making tight dance music combined with brilliantly simple songwriting about heartbreak or whatever (I care tremendously about the songwriting, for the record, I just like it with some fiddle and steel and a tight rhythm section…).
February 26, 2021 @ 10:31 am
I misclicked! Meant to reply to BWR’s crack about “Buying a cup of coffee” above.
But yeah, Bryan definitely isn’t country (and he’s actually pushed back on the label) – it’s Sad Bastard singer-songwriter stuff with much better than average vocals and melodies.
February 27, 2021 @ 10:41 pm
He isn’t country. Nothing wrong with that. Essentially, He’s a mediocre and obvious copy of one specific guy with a guitar….based on what he’s put out so far. Songs about pills and elder women in his family…..sound familiar? The other issue is he’s a novice guitar player, with that “bro in the corner at a frat party” boring, basic strum pattern. He’s got years of playing before he can be considered a good picker. That’s a whole other problem in this whole viral BS.
February 28, 2021 @ 2:22 pm
I mean…the man sounds not a fucking thing like Childers, to the point where I genuinely worry about the hearing of anyone who claims he’s copying him.
I’ve seen Tyler Childers live. Tyler Childers makes hardcore country music with a full band, and can play the hell out of the guitar – Bryan’s sound is far more indebted to Southeastern and In The Throes than anything Childers has ever released…and their vocals sound nothing alike.
I’ll also take Bryan’s lyrics and melodies over Childers’, going away. The Local Honeys opened for Childers, and blew him out of the water – not quite to the extent that Colter Wall’s opener did, but Childers and the Food Stamps weren’t all that close to a couple of girls and their guitars (On that note – every criticism I’ve ever seen of Bryan seems like it should be directed at Wall, whose uninspired, repetitive melodies and trite lyrics got blown out of the water by a 20 year old and her guitar, when he didn’t have a team of professional producers and 50 takes to get his songs right).
February 28, 2021 @ 2:24 pm
Like, I genuinely have to believe that anyone who thinks Bryan sounds like Childers doesn’t realize that people play music in Texas and Oklahoma – Bryan’s lyrics and vocals are as Red Dirt/Americana as it gets.
February 26, 2021 @ 10:25 am
As Trig says below, he’s the *current* Big Thing in alt-country/Americana, haha.
Anyway, his “William Clark Green singing Moreland and Isbell songs while trying to sound like Evan Felker, with Elephant 6 production” sound and vibe seems pretty much designed in a lab to appeal to me…so I may be the wrong person to ask.
February 26, 2021 @ 6:32 pm
All his songs sound the same IMO. I tried so hard to like him…but it doesn’t do it for me.
February 25, 2021 @ 11:55 am
If you didn’t/don’t denounce the insurgency at the Capitol, you are a traitor … period.
And I can’t imagine anyone having the balls to push back on the opinion of an enlisted man about the insurgency.
February 25, 2021 @ 1:28 pm
I don’t want to make it come across like whatever the Twitter spat about the Capitol was drove him from social media. I don’t know that. It was just one of the last things that happened before he clearly took a break from posting, and then after releasing the new songs, the disappeared entirely.
February 25, 2021 @ 4:31 pm
Wish people felt the same way about the draconian methods our overlords have used in fighting this pandemic.
You know, the Founding Fathers started an insurgency against their ruling class. As Jefferson said, sometimes the tree of liberty needs the blood of tyrants and patriots.
But keep staying on bended knee, peasant. The lords will be merciful.
February 25, 2021 @ 11:15 pm
My life’s been grand under the draconian rule. Business has been off the charts because people have the disposable income to spend on home improvement jobs since they aren’t vacationing or going to sporting/ entertainment events. I’ve never been healthier and all but stopped drinking and drugging since the start of the pandemic (too busy/ less opportunities to party). And I’m saving money not chasing Willie Nelson all over the country.
So I’ll be happy to bend a knee and save the blood of my fellow pheasants for a more worthy cause.
February 26, 2021 @ 7:18 am
i’m trying to imagine how some commenters like you would be during a crisis more akin to a world war where rampant rationing and curfews were imposed. if you get this worked up about having to wear a little mask in public, how would you respond then? i mean, i know the answer (more complaints about your perceived infringements), but it’s just fun to think about. you’re all about supporting your country, but won’t do the bare minimum. it’s precious.
February 26, 2021 @ 10:20 am
Can we please not with you two?
February 26, 2021 @ 10:43 am
Awww, I really want to see a full on CountryKnight meltdown!
They’re so funny.
February 25, 2021 @ 4:37 pm
If you didn’t/don’t denounce the domestic terrorist attacks in the capital and all across the country by blm and antifa, you are a traitor … period. See how that works?
BTW: The ‘insurgency’ at the capital was a leftwing operation. Plenty of evidence out there if you can extricate your head from your ass long enough to search it out (hint: you won’t find it on Google).
February 25, 2021 @ 9:47 pm
No it wasn’t. Quit buying into the book of Q.
February 25, 2021 @ 10:53 pm
Guilty conscience much? My comment was apolitical and you assumed I was attacking the right? I’m well aware many of the insurgents had zero political affiliation. Take Jessica Watkins a transgender Oath Keeper kicked out of the military and last voted for Obama in Presidential election. Watkins is having a tough time adjusting to prison life because he/she checks all the male boxes.
But, life would have been a whole lot easier on the far right and for Trump supporters if Trump would have just denounced the insurgency earlier in the day and wasn’t forced to issue that halfhearted statement declaring his love for the traitors.
February 26, 2021 @ 5:57 am
I love this argument, because even though it’s absolutely ridiculous, Trump supporters don’t realize it makes them look even dumber. They want to blame antifa while we’re at 200+ Trump supporters that have been arrested. So their argument is that Antifa was smart enough to get away with causing the insurrection as hundreds of Trump supporters get arrested for it. ‘Antifa just outsmarted us’. Haha
February 26, 2021 @ 10:34 am
The punk piece of shit who stole Pelosi’s laptop is literally a Neo-Nazi.
Meanwhile, everyone’s defense has been “The president told us to, so we thought it was alright!!!”
Dumb ass punks.
February 26, 2021 @ 12:39 pm
We live in bizarre times. I just wrote and deleted about 3 paragraphs since this isn’t the forum for politics; but I’ll summarize what I deleted with a simple phrase: Republicans need to return to reality if this country is going to begin to come together at all.
I know both parties have their extremists, but right now it’s the right that aren’t even trying to operate in reality…and we end up with people like Jimmy; who may be a great, kind-hearted person; but is not trusting what his eyes and ears are showing him; just like Trump asked of his base. There’s video evidence of the insurrection. We know what happened and have identified a lot of who were involved.
February 26, 2021 @ 2:16 pm
Yeah, I’m very much a Yankee Republican – I voted Romney, I’ve never voted for Warren, and a Weld v Biden ballot would have been a tough choice!
But the modern party is a toxic stew of morons, conspiracy theorists, racists, and suburban incels trying to be edgy, like CK.
Mike Honcho and Steve, of course, check every box.
Meanwhile, their elected officials are grifters to a man, desperate to capitalise on their flaccid white rage.
February 27, 2021 @ 1:48 am
Ok so I came here cause I heard Headin South and loved it and was curious about Zach Bryan. As a Dave Matthews Band fan and a Texan who loves country/bluegrass sounds he spoke to me. That said what I found was two people who’s opinions/political views I probably stand at 180 degrees with have a logical open hearted conversation about the negatives of extremism on all sides. I just wanted to say this random interaction actually gave me heart in a time when that is not easy to do. I appreciate both of y’all <3
February 25, 2021 @ 12:35 pm
I don’t think many good songs were inspired by a tweet. There are certain artists who really make social media work but I hate the idea that in order to have a successful career (in most industries) you “need” it. Also I heard that the social media companies are just shilling for our reptilian overlords, but I am taking that information with a grain of salt because maybe my buddy Jim is crazy. Or maybe not!!!
February 25, 2021 @ 1:09 pm
I have no idea how my business (lawn maintenance/ landscaping) would operate without Facebook. It’s how I solely how acquire new customers and communicate with my current ones. I guess if Facebook went away, I’d have to pay and design a website and pay for advertising, but both of those options are less interactive. The community I built through Facebook is the heart of my business.
February 25, 2021 @ 3:54 pm
I work in construction, before social media there was the phone book with a free listing, or small fee if you want something more.
Or an advertising budget in a few local papers.
Yes, it was a cost, BUT it was less time, so it evened out or cheaper. AND the local papers got money.
I am very anti social media and am working to wean my life of all the major cooperations. Sometimes it can be painful, but its a good feeling being in control of what you own and do.
Not knocking your business model, just saying that in my opinion it was possible if not better without social media.
February 25, 2021 @ 1:30 pm
Make no mistake about it, Zach Bryan would not be around if it weren’t for Twitter. That is the epicenter of his particular phenomenon. But now that he’s “made it” so to speak, perhaps he doesn’t need the interaction, or hassle. I completely expect for him to return. But I certainly don’t blame him for walking away to focus on his music.
February 25, 2021 @ 1:20 pm
“Zach seemed a little dejected recently when he posted something on Twitter denouncing the riots at the Capitol in early January and received some push back. Afterwards he took a break from social media until announcing the two new Dave Cobb-produced songs. Perhaps he saw then is when he saw social media as a distraction from the bigger picture.”
Perhaps this is another opportunity for a deep dive on cancel culture attempting to drive another artist out of the industry?
February 25, 2021 @ 1:24 pm
This article makes him sound like a martyr. He is not a good person. Ask anyone close to him.
February 25, 2021 @ 1:32 pm
I’ve talked to numerous people close to him and have never heard an ill word. Doesn’t mean he doesn’t have some enemies out there, or some skeletons in the closet. Most everyone does. But saying “anyone” close to him would say he’s not a good person sounds hyperbolic.
February 25, 2021 @ 1:38 pm
Want to offer some evidence for that dumbass statement?
February 25, 2021 @ 1:54 pm
If he has evidence, then the statement isn’t “dumbass”.
If you’re sure the statement is “dumbass”, then why did you ask for evidence?
Either the statement is “dumbass”, or the author of the statement has evidence.
February 26, 2021 @ 10:39 am
I have plenty of evidence but I will wait for the truth to come out itself or just hope karma gets him in the long run. Guy is a narcissist. Which is interesting considering his music is boring.
February 26, 2021 @ 10:47 am
Or he was a run of the mill asshole as a teenager, and has grown out of it…but you’re still holding a grudge.
There are people from HS and college that I still fucking hate, even though I have no idea what they’re like today.
February 25, 2021 @ 1:41 pm
“Zach’s manager Danny Kang”
Is this the same guy who managed Lil Nas X and Mason Ramsey ?
What else do we know about this Kang guy ?
February 25, 2021 @ 1:44 pm
Yes, it’s the same guy. Don’t know a ton about him, but he specializes in these kinds of viral artists. I reported on it a while back when Zach signed with him.
February 25, 2021 @ 1:52 pm
Thanks. That’s what I thought & it’s why I view Zach Bryan’s career with skepticism. The whole “viral artist” deal looks pretty sketchy to me.
February 25, 2021 @ 5:33 pm
Good lord. That gives me even more conviction in the comment I posted above, and the one on the article a few weeks ago. The hype machine is in full force here, folks, and I am pretty surprised it has worked as well as it has on many of the fellow SCM followers here.
February 25, 2021 @ 5:58 pm
Nobody’s being “hyped” here. 90% of the country music press have no idea who the fuck Zach Bryan even is. The two biggest music outlets in the world, Rolling Stone and Billboard? Never even mentioned him. A younger audience who’ve never interfaced with earnest songwriting such as this are eating Zach Bryan up.
February 26, 2021 @ 6:07 am
I don’t buy it one bit. The kid is with the same management that manipulated Nas X into stardom, and we’re not even at the very least allowed to question the numbers? Mark my words, this is going to snowball, and then when the shit hits the fan there will be a piece in rolling stone country about how racist we all are because we went after Nas X hardcore, but we didn’t even sniff Zach’s undies, even tho they’re owned by the same pushers.
February 26, 2021 @ 9:16 am
Trigger – literally that Kang guy is in the viral hype business. Maybe they haven’t reached the point of full on mass media blitz in their marketing plan yet (probably because he hasn’t put out anything from a quality of sound / production standpoint that is even close to being ready for primetime), but I’d bet a good chunk of change it’s in the works. That’s what these guys are paid to do, and why Bryan chose to work with them. Look up the Rolling Stone article “Is Your Song Going Viral? These Guys Would Like to Talk”. It is a full on article about Kang and his partner being the best in the business at making one hit wonders out of “viral moments”.
I will say it again because I don’t want to come off as unnecessarily bashing this kid, but the cart is way ahead of the horse right now. At this point he’s a kid with a guitar, a decent voice that he’s good at conveying a few sad emotions with AND inflecting in a popular way (hint hint), and some sappy songs that have struck a chord with a subset of people online. Time will tell if he can deliver beyond that.
February 26, 2021 @ 9:34 am
lol, you guys are acting like I’m not the ONLY dude in media to report in-depth about all that went down with Lil Nas X, and caught a ration of shit for it for being a racist or whatever. That wasn’t a moment of Danny Kang manipulating the public, that was a moment of the media debasing itself in the effort to virtue signal. Similar to Lil Nas X, I’ve been covering the Zach Bryan situation from the very start. I reported on him signing with Danny Kang back in October of 2019, and not a peep from the peanut gallery then:
https://savingcountrymusic.com/viral-star-zach-bryan-secures-professional-representation-new-song/
Zach Bryan’s rise is primarily tied to Parker McCollum retweeting him and his music finding organic and viral appeal on Twitter. I witnessed it with my own two eyes. The idea there’s some shell game going on here is incorrect. Again, if you don’t like this dude, think his music is undercooked, I completely understand. But the idea this is all smoke and mirrors is false.
February 27, 2021 @ 8:24 am
Kang isn’t in “the viral hype business.”
He’s in the business of helping folks with viral hype translate that into sustainable dollars and cents.
It’s a very different job than what a traditional agent is tasked with, so it was smart of Bryan to go with someone with expertise in the field.
February 27, 2021 @ 10:49 pm
Undercooked is a great way to put it. I don’t see how any amount of cooking is going to elevate him to what everyone is seeing here, but I’m willing to be proven wrong. And Lester…I couldn’t disagree more about Kang. Nobody looking to create a real, sustainable, respectable music career would work with him. He’s the guy you go to when looking to cash in on a viral video or twitter presence.
February 28, 2021 @ 2:43 pm
So…you agree that Kang is someone you go to if you’ve generated a ton of attention on your own, and need someone to help you translate that into something more sustainable.
Seriously – what does a traditional agent have to offer a guy who can’t tour, because the Navy, and already has a field of producers desperate to work with him…because he’s drawing more monthly listeners than Turnpike, with music he recorded with his buddies in a barn?
It’s totally fine if Bryan’s “Red Dirt By Way of Elephant 6” aesthetic isn’t your jam, but a lot of this is just conspiratorial nonsense.
February 25, 2021 @ 1:43 pm
if he’s smart, he’ll stay off of social media.
February 25, 2021 @ 3:46 pm
Good on him. Lets hope Margo and Maren do the same
February 25, 2021 @ 9:43 pm
Unlikely. Just don’t follow them if you don’t like them.
February 25, 2021 @ 8:50 pm
I don’t understand him but I wish him great success and I love that something so real and raw has become so popular.
February 26, 2021 @ 4:53 am
same here but your album’s been in constant rotation in my house.
February 27, 2021 @ 10:11 am
Same. Conrad, love your work. Keep on pickin’.
February 25, 2021 @ 9:52 pm
I don’t get it. Why close down your social media just because you’re working on new music? Just don’t log in. Erase the apps from your phone and don’t log in. In the mean time leave the accounts up giving new fans a chance to follow or like you and get alerts when you do come back to announce your new album/tour/merch/etc.
February 26, 2021 @ 5:58 am
I’ve been wanting to comment on the seemingly meteoric numbers that Zach has put up on streaming services and how suspect the whole thing seems, but I’ve left it alone. Then I saw Robert’s comment above about him having the same management as Nas X, and I am now officially calling BULLSHIT!
After all the market manipulation and neo-payola we saw during Nas’ “meteoric rise”, how in the hell has there not at least been a discussion about the truthiness of Zach’s streaming numbers?
This whole thing smells to high heaven!
February 26, 2021 @ 10:41 am
lol.
Lil Nas X cooked up his streaming numbers on his own, by being incredibly tech savvy (his fucking handle is SEO optimized!).
That…is not Zach Bryan, haha. Parker Millsap just liked his sound.
The issues someone like Bryan faces and needs his agent to handle are a lot closer to those of a “SoundCloud rapper” than a traditional country artist. He and his people were smart to realize that.
March 1, 2021 @ 1:47 pm
I was looking for Sturgill’s Instagram the other day and it was nowhere to be found.