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This story has been updated to correct John Moreland’s age.
Tulsa, Oklahoma singer-songwriters Zach Bryan and John Moreland‘s song “Memphis; the Blues” has been removed from streaming services in the midst of an ongoing feud between the two artists.
The two collaborators took jabs at one another over social media following the May 5 news that Bryan, a 29-year-old country singer, signed a $350 million publishing deal, selling his catalog and reupping with Warner Records.
After some back-and-forth posts over the weekend, Moreland accused Bryan of inappropriate and objectionable behavior.
Here’s how the conflict between the two singers began.
The John Moreland, Zach Bryan beef explained
Zach Bryan is shown performing June 29 at Nissan Stadium in Nashville.
Moreland, a 39-year-old folk musician known for tracks “You Don’t Care for Me Enough to Cry” and “Break My Heart Sweetly,” had some thoughts to share about Bryan’s multi-million dollar deal.
“$350M is a lot of money to pay for the f***in off-brand version of me,” he said on social media in a since-deleted post. “Y’all have a great day.”
John Moreland performs during the Railbird music festival at Keeneland on Saturday, Aug. 28, 2021, in Lexington, Kentucky.
On May 9, Bryan removed the track from streaming services.
He said he’d be rereleasing the track “Memphis; the Blues” later, a tune that appeared on Bryan’s 2024 record “The Great American Bar Scene,” but without Moreland’s feature.
The track had garnered over 20 million streams on Spotify and was one of Moreland’s top-streaming tracks ahead of its removal.
Bryan shared Moreland’s comments on his social media, saying, “Yooo just saw this from an artist I’ve always respected and supported. Not trying to be dramatic but refuse to have anyone with a problem with me on my records.
“Replacing ‘Memphis the Blues.’ If it goes down for a bit just know this is the reason! No hard feelings! Confused as s***, Tulsans look out for Tulsans,” he said.
“Last thing I say on it! Not partial to arguing with butt hurt grown men.”
After Bryan’s post, Moreland responded in a pair of videos on his Instagram stories.
John Moreland recalls recording “Memphis; The Blues” and his impression of Bryan
“ As far as I’m concerned, getting kicked off a Zach Bryan album is way fucking cooler than being on a Zach Bryan album,” he said on May 10.
“Oh, guys, the Zachies are coming after me,” Moreland said, referring to Bryan’s fans. “They’re gonna ruin me. They’re gonna cancel my small-time folk-music career that I’ve had since they were in elementary school.”
Moreland explained that he had never met Bryan when he was asked to record the track “Memphis; the Blues” with him. Upon their first introduction, Moreland did not get the best impression from Bryan.
“I don’t like this mother*****r,” Moreland said after describing more more time with Bryan in the recording process.
“Am I supposed to be upset? If I was asked to be on the album today, I wouldn’t do it,” he said.
“I don’t want to be on an album with a dude who is a d***head to my wife and my friends right in front of me every time I see him. I don’t want to be on an album with a dude who I’ve heard tell borderline racist jokes more than once.
“I don’t want to be on an album with a dude who brings a 19-year-old girl in the bar, and then when they tell him she can’t be in there, looks at me like I’m supposed to have his f***ing back,” Moreland said. “I don’t like that person.”
Zach Bryan performs at Nissan Stadium in Nashville , Tenn., Saturday, June 29, 2024.
Moreland, a respected musician in the Americana space, has released ten records since 2008, with his most recent studio record, “Visitor,” dropping in April 2024.
Bryan, a notable country chart-topper, is best known for his tracks “Something in the Orange” and “I Remember Everything” with Kacey Musgraves.
The Tennessean has reached out to reps for both John Moreland and Zach Bryan for comment. Bryan’s camp responded with no comment.
Feud follows Bryan’s public breakup with Brianna LaPaglia, Taylor Swift comment
Bryan’s name has been in the headlines multiple times over the past year for a number of conflicts.
In November, Bryan posted online that Ye, formerly Kanye West, is better than Taylor Swift.
Swifties did not respond well, and Bryan apologized for the post, saying he “respects her so much as a musician.”
More: Zach Bryan apologizes for ‘drunkenly’ comparing Taylor Swift and Kanye West
The month before, Bryan and his girlfriend of over-one-year, Internet personality Brianna “Chickenfry” LaPaglia, broke up.
LaPaglia has publicly accused Bryan of emotionally abusing her, claims Bryan has not openly addressed.
Audrey Gibbs is a music journalist with The Tennessean. You can reach her at agibbs@tennessean.com.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Zach Bryan, John Moreland feud: Why Bryan removed ‘Memphis; the Blues’
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