Brianna “Chicken Fry” LaPaglia is turning a new page both personally and professionally.
On Wednesday, the Barstool Sports personality made her Sports Illustrated swimsuit debut. As a cover model for the publication's January 2025 digital issueThere, she spoke about “recovering” herself after her split from country singer Zach Bryan last fall.
“It's much more important than I quote or quote hot When I put on a swimsuit, it's me reclaiming myself as a woman, reclaiming my body, my decisions, my choices. This cover represents me being me again and taking control of my life. This is my body. My body hasn't had that experience and I'm not 100% right now, but this is me. This has nothing to do with anyone else,” said LaPaglia, 25.
Their relationship was first reported in 2023, but Bryan revealed his split from LaPaglia through a social media announcement in October last year. Something that surprised LaPaglia.
“I woke up and saw that Zac had posted on Instagram that he had broken up with me, and I had no idea it was going to be posted,” LaPaglia expressed her emotions in a YouTube video.
“He hasn't texted me or called me.”
Immediately after the dissolution, LaPaglia's suspicions Brian offered her $12 million if she would sign a non-disclosure agreement prohibiting her from talking about their relationship.
“After everything was over, they contacted me. [Bryan’s] My team and I were offered a large sum of money and several options,” he said in a November 2024 episode of the “BFFs” podcast with Barstool founders Dave Portnoy and Josh Richards. So she spoke.
Lapaglia, He also accused Brian of emotional abuse.spoke to Sports Illustrated Swimsuit about what it means to regain confidence.
“When he walks into a room, he wants to talk to everyone. When the relationship first started, that became a problem for him. He talked too much, you know. There is There were too many, and maybe he wasn't given enough spotlight. He made me feel like; Oh, I need to calm down” she explained.
“I'm walking down the street, I'm standing in a crosswalk, and I strike up a conversation. I'm in a warehouse right now, and I'm talking to a guy in the warehouse for about 20 minutes long. Before, I was just sitting in a chair. I was finally able to talk to my former hairdresser again. Now that the one person who always felt like a cloud of doom over me is gone, I have a little spark of life within me. I realized I was getting it back.”
LaPaglia, the newest addition to the SI family, filmed on location in La Quinta, California, and isn't upset about sticking up for her ex.
“On a trivial level, that’s my favorite.” f— you. This is who I am, this is what I wanted to do, and now I am on the digital cover,” she said.
A few weeks before releasing the digital cover, LaPaglia spoke candidly about ending the chapter of 2024 as the “worst shit king” and looking ahead to a new beginning.
“Seriously, this year has changed my life for the better, taught me more than I ever imagined, and truly shaped me as a woman.” she posted on Instagram on January 1st.
“The misfortunes we encounter throughout life are always accompanied by consolation.”
