Zach Bryan was arrested in Vinita, Oklahoma on Thursday, Wide Open Country has confirmed. The 27-year-old country music star has been charged with "obstruction of investigation," though the exact nature of the incident leading to the arrest is still unclear. He was booked into Craig County Jail on the evening of Sept. 7 and photos of the singer's mugshot have already begun surfacing online.
Bryan took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to address the situation with a candid apology.
"Today I had an incident with the Oklahoma Highway Patrol. Emotions got the best of me and I was out of line in the things I said. I support law enforcement as much as anyone can, I was just frustrated in the moment, it was unlike me and I apologize," he wrote. "They brought me to jail, and there is a mug shot of me floating around. Prayers we can all move on from this and prayers people know I'm just trying the best I can, I love you guys and I am truly sorry to the officers."
Today I had an incident with the Oklahoma Highway Patrol. Emotions got the best of me and I was out of line in the things I said.
I support law enforcement as much as anyone can, I was just frustrated in the moment, it was unlike me and I apologize. They brought me to jail, and…— Zach Bryan (@zachlanebryan) September 8, 2023
Update: Bryan shared another response via video, which he posted on social media on Sept. 8.
"I just wanted to be completely transparent with everyone who listens to my music about what happened yesterday with me getting arrested yesterday. Because I don't want the Internet to do what the Internet does and...make stuff up," Bryan said. "I have to deal with the legalities of it. I did go to jail. They didn't play favorites. I was an idiot today and my decisions did not reflect who I was as a person and I just want to make that clear. I should've been smarter about it."
Bryan went on to say that earlier in the week he had been driving through a small town in Oklahoma and drove by a cop while going about "four or five" over the speed limit. Bryan says he was then pulled over and the cop asked for his license, registration and his address. The singer says he told the officer he "didn't feel comfortable" giving him his address, after which the officer responded "If you don't give me your address, I'm going to have to take you to jail."
Bryan says after he refused to give him his address, the officer told him to step out of the vehicle and then put handcuffs on him. At that point, Bryan says he gave the officer his address and the officer removed the handcuffs and gave him a warning.
"I think it just frustrated me a lot because I didn't know if I had a right to refuse giving him my address or not, but I did," Bryan said.
Bryan then shared that on Sept. 7, he decided to drive to Boston "to see the Birds play." Bryan began driving to Boston with his security guard behind him in a separate vehicle. When he was about 40 minutes away from his house, driving through Vinita, Okla., Bryan says he saw that his security guard had been pulled over, so Bryan pulled around the block and drove up next to him.
"I'm just sitting there. I didn't get out of the vehicle or anything. I'm just sitting there waiting on him. Ten to fifteen minutes goes by and I get out of the car....I was gonna smoke a cigarette. The cop comes up to me and is like 'sir, get back in your vehicle.'"
Bryan says the officer told him "get back in your vehicle or I'm going to have to take you to jail."
"Like a dumbass, I said 'take me to f*cking jail? What do you mean?'" Bryan says. "So I get too lippy with him, he brings me over to his car and I just didn't help my situation at all...It was ridiculous. It was immature. I pray everyone knows that I don't think I'm above the law. I was just being disrespectful and I shouldn't have been. It was my mistake."
Bryan says he was then put in tight handcuffs and when he told the officer that the cuffs hurt, the officer responded that they're not supposed to be comfortable.
"Fifteen minutes goes by and they finally let me out of the vehicle and I'm just mouthing off like an idiot — like an actual child. I'm like 'man, someone's got to get ahold of you guys. Why are you using your authority like this? This is so wrong.' When in reality they were just doing their jobs. I was upset."
Bryan says he was then taken to jail, where he was held for a few hours. Bryan says he "cooled off" and ended up shaking hands with the cop who had arrested him.
for the sake of transparency on yesterday pic.twitter.com/IJRjEDOrCH
— Zach Bryan (@zachlanebryan) September 8, 2023
The Oklahoma native has gained significant attention in recent years, making headlines for both his hit songs and his personal life. Recently, he has been in the spotlight for dating Barstool Sports personality Brianna "Chickenfry" LaPaglia.
The timing of this incident comes just one day after tickets for Bryan's highly-anticipated 2024 Quittin' Time Tour were released. Alongside concerns regarding the arrest, there's been notable backlash from fans regarding the pricing of the tickets—some of which sold for nearly $1,000. The potential impact of both these factors on his upcoming shows remains to be seen.
