Zach Bryan has been paying it forward since becoming a country star, honoring his former Navy commanding officer, Alba, with every song.
“He’s the reason, man. He’s the reason I recorded any songs ever at all,” Bryan, 30, told Matthew McConaughey in the “Young Manhood & Other Donatable Organs — On The Porch” conversation released last month.
The “Lies” singer confirmed that he gives Alba a cut of his song royalties, saying, “I thought it was justified, man. He’s the reason I have any music at all.”
Bryan, who sat down with McConaughey, 57, in support of his latest EP Young Manhood and Other Donatable Organs, noted that his time in the U.S. Navy shaped him as a man and musician. He enlisted at the age of 17 and served eight years from 2013 to 2021, achieving the rank of Aviation Ordnanceman Second Class.
“I wouldn’t be who I was without him f***ing looking at me and saying I can record those songs,” Bryan shared of his military guru. “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.”
The Grammy winner explained that thanks to the royalties, Alba is “living well now” and retired from the Navy.
“Because that’s how much that meant to me. Him believing in me enough to do that for me,” Bryan said. “We see each other when we can.”
The “Oklahoma Smokeshow” hitmaker released his first two albums, 2019’s DeAnn and 2020’s Elisabeth, and two EPs while still enlisted.
He received an honorable discharge from the Navy in 2021 to pursue his music career full-time, following the success of his hit song “Heading South.” Bryan has since released four more studio albums and three EPs.
Bryan reflected on his time in the Navy during his sit down with McConaughey, speaking his truth about his upbringing while sitting on his porch in the hills of Appalachia.
“I do miss the structure of being in the military. It was nice,” the musician confessed. “I was really proud of being in the Navy.”
The “I Remember Everything” singer revealed that his family’s connection to the military made him feel even more connected to the work.
“I was really proud to be in the Navy because I was in the boots of my grandfather and in the boots of my father,” he said. “The Navy made a man out of me.”
Bryan will give fans a deeper look at his years in the Navy, rise to stardom and the past 10 years in his memoir, Young Manhood and Other Donatable Organs, which comes out in January 2027. It goes hand in hand with his latest EP, which features collaborations with Lana Del Rey and the Turnpike Troubadours.
