Country music star Zach Bryan is responding to criticism after claims that his new song “Bad News” contains lyrics that appear to criticize investigations by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Brian, 29, shared a portion of the song on Instagram on Friday, prompting many, including White House officials, to accuse him of apparently targeting an attack on immigrants.
In this song, Brian sings: “I hear the cops are here, sassy mom, right? And ICE is going to break down your door, trying to build a house, no more bills, but I have a phone, all the kids are scared and all alone.”
“The bars won't stop hitting, the rocks won't stop rolling, the middle fingers won't stop raising. I've got bad news. The red, white and blue are going away,” the song continued.
Brian repeated the lyrics in his caption.
Brian, who served in the U.S. Navy, said in a post on his Instagram Stories on Tuesday that he wrote “Bad News” several months ago, claiming the song was about “more than anything I love this country and everyone in it.”
“When you listen to the rest of the song, you'll understand the full context on both sides of the aisle,” he wrote. “Anyone using this as a weapon right now is just proving how devastatingly divided we all are. We need to find a way back together.
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“I serve this country and I love this country. The song itself is about all of us coming out of this divided space. I'm not speaking as a politician or as someone greater than you, but as just a 29-year-old guy who's confused like everyone else.”
Brian said, “When you see how excited you are, it's not only embarrassing, but a little scary.”
“Whether you're on the left or the right, we're all the same Americans. Let me be clear: I'm not on either side of the radical spectrum. To all of you who are disappointed in me on either side of what you believe in, please know that I'm also trying my best and we all say things that are sometimes misunderstood,” he wrote.
“Have a great day everyone. I love each and every one of you!!!”
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In a separate Instagram story, Brian said that over the last few months of his life, he has been “scrutinized by more people than I ever thought possible.”
“I feel like I've tried my best in so many ways, but I don't even have a clue where I'm going anymore. I feel like I'm trying to grow wings and falling off a cliff at the same time,” he wrote.
Bryan said he was “very proud” to serve in a country where “all of us can speak freely and have conversations with each other without being exposed on the internet, accused, or worse, exposed to the violence and heartbreaking events we've faced over the past few months.”
Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem criticized the unreleased song during an appearance on The Benny Johnson Show, saying that she hopes the country singer “understands how completely disrespectful that song is, not just to law enforcement, but to this country and to every individual who has ever stood up and fought for our freedoms.”
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“He just compromised everything by putting out a product that attacked individuals who were just trying to make our city safe. That's why, Zack, I didn't listen to your music. Today, I'm so happy about that. If you truly believed what that song meant, I would never have given you a dime to enrich your lifestyle,” Noem added.
Tricia McLaughlin, assistant secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, said that Brian should “stick to Pink Skies,” referring to one of Brian's songs released in 2024.
White House Press Secretary Abigail Jackson said in a statement to Newsweek magazine, “Zach Bryan opens the door to criminal illegal aliens and denounces brave ICE agents, but according to Something in the Orange, the majority of Americans disagree with him and support President Trump's Great American Reconstruction. Godspeed, Zach!”
The Department of Homeland Security used Bryan's song “All Night Revival” in a post to X and posted an ICE operation video after Bryan shared an excerpt of the song.
The video shows ICE officers entering the area, arresting and detaining people, with the caption: “We are having an all-night revival.”
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