Zach Bryan released his new EP Young Manhood and Other Donatable Organs in October, which is off to a hot start after it debuted at #2 on the all-genre Billboard 200 albums chart, a massive feat considering it was technically an EP, not a full-length album.
And around the time of the release, Bryan sat down for a lengthy two-hour conversation with Matthew McConaughey, where he went in-depth on his sobriety, Morgan Wallen, his forthcoming book, and many other aspects of his life and career.
Bryan is typically a pretty private person, so it was really interesting to hear about his life from him directly, as he has lived a ton of life after bursting onto the music scene in 2019, when a video of his song “Condemned” went mega viral while he was in the middle of his time as an active-duty Navy member.
Zach has a long family history in the armed services, as both of his parents, as well as his great-grandfathers, grandfather and a few uncles, also served in the Navy. He was honorably discharged from his service in the Navy in 2021, and I think it’s safe to say he definitely made the right call in pursuing a music career…
He’s spoken previously about how he was still committed to serving and loved his time as a member of the United States military, but ultimately, he always felt like he was born to be a songwriter:
“I had people who were in my life that weren’t supportive of me [being a musician]. And I was like, ‘That’s strange. I want to be supported in everything that I do.’
So I left those situations and I honestly was in the Navy and I wasn’t… that’s why my supervisors and things, they were like really, really intrigued by me because I told them. I was like, ‘I don’t have to get out of the Navy.
You guys can keep me if you want. I don’t care. I’ll always write music. No matter what anyone says or anyone does, this is what I do. And that’s what I’m going to do. So you guys can keep me in the Navy. I don’t mind.'”
It was one of Zach’s friends, Leo Alba, who was his Commanding Officer at the time, who helped him record his first album DeAnn in 2019, while they were both active-duty sailors stationed in Jacksonville, Florida.
They used their weekend liberty time to rent the Airbnb Bryan famously recorded in, where they hung old mattresses on the walls for soundproofing and recorded the album in 48 hours. Alba also worked on Bryan’s follow-up album, Elisabeth, and engineered or mastered several of his early fan-favorite tracks.
There’s no doubt his influence and help was massive for Zach when he first started all of this as an amateur, and Bryan told McConaughey that Alba is “the reason” he ever even attempted to record any songs, confirming a fan question that he does give him a part of the royalties from every song he releases.
It’s pretty unheard of, definitely above and beyond especially for an artist at Zach’s level. And as you can imagine, he says his friend is “living well” now out in Texas, and they remain close. He adds that Leo’s kids call Zach uncle and they get together as often as they can:
“Alba, the guy I told you about… He’s the reason, man, he’s the reason I recorded any songs ever, at all. I thought it was justified, man. He’s the reason I have any music at all.
He’s he’s the reason we’re all here at this house, pretty much. I wouldn’t be who I was without him f****** looking at me and saying I can record those songs. And his kids call me their uncle, he comes to shows all the time, and I give him a percentage of every song that I release.
Because that’s how much that meant to me. Him believing in me enough to do that for me. And he’s living well now, he got out of the Navy, he lives out in Texas and we see each other when we can.”
Giving someone who helped him get his start a cut of the money from each song he releases is just incredible, and I can give him a TON of credit for that. Someone who remembers the people who helped them from the beginning is admirable, and you don’t see that very often in this way with artists that reach Zach’s level. Say what you want about Zach, it’s pretty dang cool.
The full interview is available below.
Zach Bryan 2027 Tour Dates
April 28 — Minneapolis, MN — U.S. Bank Stadium
May 1 — Indianapolis, IN — Lucas Oil Stadium
May 4 — Green Bay, WI — Lambeau Field
May 7 — Chicago, IL — Soldier Field
May 8 — Chicago, IL — Soldier Field
May 14 — East Rutherford, NJ — MetLife Stadium
May 15 — East Rutherford, NJ — MetLife Stadium
May 18 — Baltimore, MD — M&T Bank Stadium
May 22 — Nashville, TN — Nissan Stadium
May 25 — Philadelphia, PA — Lincoln Financial Stadium
May 29 — Atlanta, GA — Mercedes-Benz Stadium
June 2 — Buffalo, NY– Highmark Stadium
July 16 — Las Vegas, NV– Allegiant Stadium
July 20 — Los Angeles, CA– SoFi Stadium
July 24 — Seattle, Washington– Lumen Field
July 27 — Vancouver, BC– BC Place
July 28 — Vancouver, BC– BC Place
July 31 — Edmonton, AB — Commonwealth Stadium
August 1 — Edmonton, AB — Commonwealth Stadium
August 6 — Boise, ID — Albertsons Stadium
December 2 — Melbourne, VIC — Marvel Stadium
December 3 — Melbourne, VIC — Marvel Stadium
December 4 — Melbourne, VIC — Marvel Stadium
December 10 — Sydney, NSW — Accor Stadium
December 11 — Sydney, NSW — Accor Stadium
December 17 — Brisbane, QLD — Suncorp Stadium
December 18 — Brisbane, QLD — Suncorp Stadium
December 19 — Brisbane, QLD — Suncorp Stadium
