Zach Bryan’s impulsive split from Brianna Chickenfry stemmed from his ongoing mental health struggles and grief over his mother’s death which caused him to spiral into self sabotage, insiders claim.
The country star, 28, ‘blindsided’ Barstool Sports’ favorite Brianna, 25, when he announced on Instagram that he had called it quits in the wake of an ‘incredibly hard year personally.’
Zach has been struggling to cope with the ’emotional rollercoaster’ he has been on since his mother Annette died in 2016, according to insiders who claim the singer has trouble maintaining relationships as he is still trying to ‘figure himself out.’
‘Zach’s life has been an emotional rollercoaster ever since his mother died,’ an insider told DailyMail.com exclusively. ‘Zach is dealing with mental health struggles.
‘His mom was his rock, and he was able to learn from her and her struggles, and now he doesn’t have that outlet. Brianna was someone who took on Zach on and dealt with all his struggles.’
Zach Bryan, pictured in February 2024, announced his split from girlfriend Brianna Chickenfry on Tuesday
The singer is said to be battling various mental health issues and is struggling with the loss of his mother Annette, who died in 2016
The source said he ‘can’t handle relationships very well because he is still trying to figure himself out,’ adding that he ‘doesn’t want to be a burden.’
They continued: ‘Plus once things are great, he seems to sabotage himself by removing himself from a good thing and that seems to be what he is doing with Brianna.’
Zach, who has been slammed for allegedly using the celebrity dating app Raya so soon after his split, really wants to be in a relationship, but simply can’t handle one on top of everything else.
‘He can’t deal with so much anxiety in life,’ the insider continued. ‘He finds it hard enough to navigate his life, his career and his mental health, so it’s hard to throw a relationship into the mix no matter how good it is, even though that is exactly what he wants.
‘Zach definitely chases people who will be there for him at all costs. Once he feels that isn’t there, he drops them cold turkey.
‘Brianna just happens to be the latest person to deal with it. When she says she was blindsided, she is telling the truth.’
Zach was previously married to Rose Madden, which ended a year after their July 2020 wedding. Both parties have since wiped nearly all trace of each other on social media.
Not long after their split he started dating Debbie Peifer, but the pair called it quits in May 2023, just two months before he confirmed he was dating Brianna.
Zach, pictured at the Grammys in February 2024, announced their split in a statement on Instagram and said he has had an ‘incredibly hard year personally’
‘He finds it hard enough to navigate his life, his career and his mental health, so it’s hard to throw a relationship into the mix no matter how good it is,’ an insider told DailyMail.com
Brianna – whose real name is Brianna LaPaglia – said she was ‘blindsided’ as she addressed their split in an emotional video message to fans minutes after Zach announced the news in a lengthy Instagram statement.
‘Addressing something: Brianna and me have broken up with each other and I respect and love her with every ounce of my heart,’ he wrote.
‘She has loved me unconditionally for a very long time and for that I’ll always thank her.
‘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.’
He continued: ‘Please respect Brianna’s privacy and space in this and if you have it in your heart, mine too.
‘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.’
Zach previously opened up about his mom’s death, telling the New York Times that it ‘really solidified the darkness in life to me.’
‘People say I repress,’ he said. ‘And I’m like, no, the person that I want to tell all this stuff to is dead.’
He also admitted to using songwriting as a form of therapy back in 2017, just one year after Annette died.
‘I was in the Navy,’ he recalled to Joe Rogan on his podcast last year. ‘I had a lot of s**t going on, I didn’t believe in therapy because that’s “crazy” in the Navy… and I started just making music.’
Zach’s breakup announcement came one day after fans speculated the duo had gone their separate ways after a Reddit user claimed to have seen him on Raya with photos of his alleged profile.
And once their split was confirmed, the post garnered plenty of responses, with many expressing outrage that Zach had seemingly moved on so quickly from Brianna.
The Pink Skies hitmaker was also slammed by Dave Portnoy who said he was dedicating the Taylor Swift song The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived to Brianna in a pointed dig at Zach on X.
The Barstool Sports chief hosts the BFFs podcast alongside Brianna and TikTok influencer Josh Richards.
He also faced a second wave of criticism from fans who lambasted him for promoting a new song just hours after their split, as they accused him of ‘treating women in a toxic way for song inspiration.’
Zach was honorably discharged from the Navy in 2021 to pursue a music career after his song Heading South went viral in 2020. His debut album American Heartbreak, was a chart-topping success in 2022.
