Country singer Zach Bryan has issued a response to a controversy concerning his forthcoming song, “Bad News,” which contains lyrics slamming Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) actions and operations all across the United States, demonstrating that modern country music artists are continuing to slide more to the left.
The Grammy-winning singer, who formerly served in the U.S. Navy, published a post on his Instagram account complaining about the divisive response to the new song, which hasn’t been released in full. Bryan gave his followers a taste of the track by posting a short clip of it online. “I served this country, I love this country and the song itself is about all of us coming out of this divided space,” Bryan’s post read.
“I wasn’t speaking as a politician or some greater-than-thou a——, just a 29-year-old man who is just as confused as everyone else,” Bryan continued. “To see how much s— it stirred up makes me not only embarrassed but kind of scared.” Bryan shared a clip of the song with a caption that said, “the fading of the red, white, and blue.”
“I heard the cops came / cocky m—–f——, ain’t they,” Bryan sings in the new track, ripping into law enforcement officers, which is an unusual statement coming from a country singer. “ICE is gonna come bust down your door / Try and build a house no one builds no more / But I got a telephone / Kids are all scared and all alone.”
According to a report from ABC News, the song pulled a range of reactions as the country continues to remain divided over ICE operations to detain criminal illegal aliens and deport them from the country. The controversial lyrics also come at a time when ICE agents are facing heightened threats of violence and harassment from liberal protesters.
Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin issued a statement in response to Bryan’s song, telling the singer to “Stick to ‘Pink Skies,’ dude.” Then-DHS Secretary Krist Noem was asked to give her thoughts on the song during a press briefing in Portland, Oregon. She said she was not a fan.
“Zach, I didn’t listen to your music. I’m happy about that today,” she went on to say during the briefing. “That makes me very happy that I never gave you a single penny to enrich your lifestyle.” She also expressed her disdain for it during an interview on popular conservative podcast host Benny Johnson’s show.
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“I hope Zach Bryan understands how completely disrespectful that song is, not just to law enforcement but to this country, to every single individual that has stood up and fought for our freedoms,” Noem told Johnson. “He just compromised it all by putting out a product such as that attacks individuals who are just trying to make our streets safe.”
Adding insult to injury, DHS used Bryan’s 2020 smash hit, “Revival,” in a promotional video posted on Instagram that showed ICE agents detaining illegal aliens. It is not known if the song was licensed for use in the video. Bryan then stated that he had written “Bad News” months prior and only posted a small sample of the tune.
“This shows you how divisive a narrative can be when shoved down our throats through social media. 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,” the country star said.
Watch another woke country singer have a full meltdown after getting called out for his wokeness and walked out on by concert attendees here: