Dave Portnoy and Josh Richards are standing by their BFF, Brianna “Chickenfry” LaPaglia.
After country music star Zach Bryan abruptly broke up with LaPaglia—one-third of the BFFs podcast—in October, the other two hosts created a fiery diss track titled “Smallest Man,” blasting the musician over allegations of emotional abuse. But the song, which gained significant attention and praise, was quickly taken down—twice.
Keep reading to find out why and what the Barstool founder plans to do next.
Why Was “Smallest Man” Taken Down?
On Wednesday, November 6, Portnoy said the song was removed from YouTube due to a copyright claim, specifically pointing to the outro.
When the song was re-released, it was taken down again because Richards is signed to the same label as Bryan—Warner Records. Portnoy later learned that Warner Music Group holds the rights to Richards’ music, as the 22-year-old TikToker signed with them in 2020, giving the company authority to pull the track.
What References Does the Diss Track Make?
The lyrics reference multiple aspects of LaPaglia and Bryan’s relationship, including how they met on the exclusive dating app Raya—where Bryan reportedly returned immediately after blindsiding LaPaglia with their breakup on and off social media.
The song opens with, “I said trust me, caught your pants on fire / Tinder, Bumble, Raya, knew you was a liar,” and continues, “You’re a douchebag, you just made a new rival / Pretty soon you going to need a revival.”
In the video, Portnoy and Richards, dressed as policemen, pull over a Bryan lookalike driving a pickup truck—a clear nod to Bryan’s 2023 arrest for allegedly interfering with a traffic stop. The duo drives the point home with a verse: “Looking for pink skies, but now you’re seeing stars / There’s something in the orange and it’s you behind these bars, b**ch.” Not only do Portnoy and Richards mock the singer for the incident, but they also include embarrassing police-recorded audio from Bryan’s arrest, amplifying the satire.
They turn up the shade on Bryan’s relationship history, with Richards adding, “You say you remember everything, I guess not because you forgot about your wedding ring,” a jab at the Grammy winner’s brief 2021 marriage to Rose Madden, which was rumored to involve infidelity.
What’s Next for Portnoy?
Despite the takedowns, Portnoy isn’t backing down. “I will write 10,000 diss tracks. I’ll put the headsets on. I’ll come back spitting bars twice as hot,” he vowed.
Portnoy continued, “We’ll figure this s*** out. It may take 24 hours,” calling both Warner Music Group and Bryan “f**king p****es” before teasing, “Wait till you hear the podcast tomorrow.”
He added, “Maybe we do ‘Dave’s version’ — I heard Bri may get in the booth and do her version.”
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