Zach Bryan gets deeply personal on his new album, With Heaven on Top.
The Grammy-winning singer, 29, released his sixth studio album on January 9. Across 25 songs, Bryan reflects on heartbreak, his new marriage to Samantha Leonard, and his journey to sobriety.
On the pitch SkinBryan seems to reference an ex, singing, “I’ll take a blade to my own skin/And I’ll never touch yours again,” asking, “Do you love people just to win when it’s over?”
He also adds, “Still talking s— about all your friends?/Gotta take it all on the chin this time stone cold sober.”
Fans believe the song refers to Brianna “Chickenfry” LaPaglia, who Bryan split from in October 2024.
LaPaglia later accused him of emotional abuse, claiming he offered her $12 million and a house to keep quiet. Bryan has not publicly addressed the allegations.
On Plastic cigarettehe sings about meeting an “evil” in Queens, where the former couple first met: “My brother had told me to go, but I didn’t believe the evil under some people you meet out in Queens.”
Bryan contrasts this past with songs that pay tribute to Leonard, whom he married in Spain on New Year’s Eve. IN Worn backhe sings, “When I go to hell or heaven, can I take my girl with me?” and praises her love of “romance, good sex, music and ruling the world.”
He also reflects on sobriety and fatherhood. On Appetitehe sings, “Everybody I know got older/ told my drunk ass to get sober,” adding, “What if I don’t want kids that grow up like their father?”
Bryan announced in November that he was two months sober. He also briefly references his 2023 arrest on the title track: “Spend a night in jail after pissing off a cop.”
With Heaven on top was written and produced by Bryan in Tulsa, Oklahoma. He begins a world tour in March and releases an acoustic version of the album three days later.
