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Country singer Gavin Adcock has once again found himself in the middle of controversy, this time over comments aimed at fellow artist Zach Bryan.
During the August 20 episode of Rolling Stone's Nashville Now podcast, Adcock didn't hold back when the conversation turned to the "Something in the Orange" star. "I think that Zach Bryan puts on a big mask in his day-to-day life and sometimes he can't help but rip it off and show his true colours. I don't know if Zach Bryan's really that great of a person," the 26-year-old said.
Earlier in the summer, Bryan faced pushback from a 14-year-old fan on TikTok. The teen said they had spent hours outside MetLife Stadium in New Jersey waiting to meet him, but he left without stopping for the crowd. In a now-deleted reply, Bryan wrote, "You're not entitled after someone plays two and a half hours to a picture or a hello. Get off my d***." He later explained he had taken photos with fans on other nights but needed rest before a third show.
Adcock criticized the way Bryan handled the situation. Posting on X, he wrote: "If you can't handle the criticism of a 14-year-old why do people idolize you? That kid was head over heels to meet you, and spent/ parents spent a ton of money to see you. He's got feeling too and a you're a 'grown man' nearly 30." On the podcast, he added, "It wasn't about not wanting to sign autographs after a show, it's like letting a 14-year-old kid rant, without saying, 'Get off my d---.' You're bigger than that."
This isn't the first time Adcock has sparked headlines with his outspoken views. Earlier in the year, he dismissed Beyoncé's Grammy-winning album Cowboy Carter, arguing that it didn't belong in the country music genre. Beyoncé, on the other hand, has shared that the project was shaped by her experiences of feeling excluded from the country music community.
Charley Crockett stepped in on social media, defending Beyonce's place in country music and pointing out that the issues fans complain about go back to years of trends within the genre itself. He made it clear he wasn't impressed with tearing down a Black woman just to push another career forward.
Meanwhile, fans of Zach Bryan have pushed back on Adcock's latest comments, with some accusing him of "picking fights for clout." One fan wrote, "I think Gavin Adcock isn't really that great of an artist," while another said, "Well he, [Zach Bryan] is a 100x the songwriter you are."
So far, Bryan has kept quiet on the matter.
