The Barstool podcast host announced Wednesday she would be taking at least a week-long break to prioritize her mental health
Fans of Brianna “Chickenfry” LaPaglia will have to wait a bit longer to hear the Barstool podcaster spill all about her breakup with country musician Zach Bryan. LaPaglia released a statement on the BFFs TikTok Wednesday night, saying the podcast would take a week-long pause before releasing a new episode.
“Hey Guys! We tried to record this week but I am having a very hard time figuring out how I want to handle this publicly due to all the backlash,” LaPaglia wrote. “I am going to put my mental health first this week.”
The news comes in the midst of a social media firestorm surrounding LaPaglia’s public breakup with singer-songwriter Bryan. The two were first seen together at the 2023 American Music Awards, with LaPaglia publicly confirming their relationship on her podcast a month later. The couple were together for about a year before Bryan announced their breakup on his Instagram story last week.
“Brianna and me have broken up with each other and I respect and love her with every ounce of my heart,” he wrote. “She has loved me unconditionally for a very long time and for that I’ll always thank her. I have 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 our different ways. I am not perfect and I never will be. With everything I am and to anyone I let down, I am sorry. I try my best in everything. I failed people that love me and mostly myself.”
LaPaglia has continued to say that she was surprised by the public announcement. “I had no idea that post was going up,” she said in a short video posted on YouTube, eventually crying. “I’m completely blindsided by that.” The podcaster has been open that since she confirmed her relationship with Bryan, extreme fans began harassing her — vitriol and speculation that’s only increased since the breakup.
Bryan is best known for his growing fanbase in the country music space. (He was recently on the cover of Rolling Stone’s annual Musicians on Musicians issue alongside Bruce Springsteen.) Following a few viral Vines, LaPagalia turned an internship with Barstool Sports into a hosting gig on the BFFs podcast alongside Josh Richards and Barstool founder Dave Portnoy. The podcaster is best known for her comedic takes on dating and working post-college, and hosts her own podcast called PlanBri Uncut. In addition to discussing pop culture, BFFs is well known for dissecting the public lives and relationships of its hosts. When Richards broke up with his now-ex-girlfriend, singer Ness Barrett, the relationship and its eventual end were discussed in depth on air, which led many fans to believe this week’s episode would focus on LaPaglia’s split with Bryan. But while the host has still not publicly announced how much — or how little — she’ll discuss the breakup, it’s clear she still needs more time before making any decision.
“Josh and Dave want to make sure I do what’s best for me,” LaPaglia continued in her statement. “I need to prioritize the right things this week. I hope you can all understand.”