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Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy has come out in defense of Brianna Chickenfry after her sudden split from country singer Zach Bryan.
Portnoy, who hosts the BFFs podcast with Chickenfry (real name LaPaglia) and Josh Richards, took to X on Sunday (October 22) to send a message to his friend. His remark came hours after Chickenfry confirmed her breakup from Bryan, writing on her Instagram Story that she was “feeling really blindsided.”
In response to the news, Portnoy shared a link to Swift’s hit breakup song “The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived,” from her latest album, The Tortured Poets Department. “Dedicating this to @BChikenfry,” he wrote.
“Pls address the drama during BFFs I need it,” one fan pleaded in response.
On Sunday, the country star first posted a statement to his Instagram Story to reveal that he and Chickenfry had officially split after more than a year of dating. “Addressing something: Brianna and me have broken up with each other [sic] and I respect and love her with every ounce of my heart,” his statement began. “She has loved me unconditionally for a very long time and for that, I’ll always thank her.”
He continued: “I’ve had an incredibly hard year personally and struggled through some pretty severe things. I thought it would be beneficial for both of us to go out different ways. I am not perfect and never will be.”
The “Something in the Orange” singer then asked for “privacy and space” for both himself and his ex, before saying he was “sorry” to “anyone [he] let down.”
Chickenfry then released a statement of her own on her Instagram Story, writing: “Hey guys I’m feeling really blindsided right now. Gonna hop off social media for a while and attempt to heal privately, when I’m ready I’ll be back and ready to talk. I love you guys so much thank you for all of your kind words. Remember you are so loved and everything’s always gonna be OK.”
Chickenfry later posted a video on her YouTube channel, explaining that they ended the relationship one day before Bryan posted his Instagram statement.
“I just woke up to Zach posting on his Instagram that we broke up, and I had no idea that post was going up,” she said through tears. “He didn’t text me, he didn’t call me.:
She went on to detail how hurt she was by Brayn’s post and the breakup, confessing that she’d been “crying for five days straight.”
“How can you give someone everything and love them so unconditionally through stuff that you shouldn’t,” she said. “How can you give every ounce of yourself to someone and then be discarded of in a few days? It’s really, really heartbreaking.”
She also told fans she was not ready to reveal details of their breakup, but she will at some point.
In July 2023, Chickenfry first confirmed that she was dating Bryan, before they made their red carpet debut at the Grammys in February. At the awards show, Bryan won his first Grammy award for his duet with Kacey Musgraves, “I Remember Everything.”
Bryan and Chickenfry’s split came after some Reddit users posted alleged screenshots of the singer on the exclusive dating app Raya, sparking rumors the pair had broken up.
However, Chickenfry initially shut down the speculation during an episode of Barstool Sports’ BFFs podcast earlier this month, saying they were “together and everything’s OK.”
“I don’t want to speak for Zach, but he kind of spoke for himself on Instagram. He’s just going through a lot of personal s*** and I feel like I’m taking the brunt of all of it,” she said. “We don’t post each other for a week and it took the internet by storm. He’s going through a lot of personal stuff and I went home and just separated [myself].”
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