Welcome to Sleeper Hit Support Group, a column diving into the song currently occupying the bottom spot of the Billboard Hot 100.

In a pop landscape that asks more questions that it answers, I'm setting out to answer three questions about each of these songs: how it got here, if the song is good, and where it's going. In this 100th spot we'll find unlikely ascents, falls from grace, and resurgences of hits from bygone eras.

Today, we're taking a look at "Plastic Cigarette" by Zach Bryan

How did it get here?

Country music and those that inhabit it have a hard time killing their darlings. Zach Bryan, one of the most respected modern country stars, is not above that issue, but his prolificness comes off as more than just a stream-bolstering tactic. His latest album, With Heaven on Top, doesn't only boast a 78 minute runtime across 25 tracks, but also has a separately released acoustic version.

Zach Bryan was born and spent his childhood on the United States' Navy base in Yokosuka, Japan, where his parents were stationed. The town sits about an hour drive south of Tokyo. His parents divorced at age 12, sparking a move back stateside to Oologa, Oklahoma with his father. He started writing songs as a hobby soon after, finding time to write even when Bryan enlisted in the US Navy himself when he was 17. By the time he left the Navy in 2021 after eight years of service, he had two albums under his belt.

His debut, 2019's DeAnn, was recorded entirely in a Jacksonville Airbnb Bryan was staying at while stationed in the area. Him and his friends pushed mattresses against the walls for sound absorption. The entirely acoustic album was dedicated to Bryan's mother, who'd passed away from complications linked with alcoholism just three years prior.

Shortly after DeAnn's release, Bryan got married to Rose Madden, a fellow member of the Navy. He named his sophomore record Elisabeth after her (I would assume it's her middle name but I haven't found anything confirming that), with its original artwork featuring a picture of the two on a roof. That artwork, as well as the record's title track and "Anita - Part Two" have been removed from streaming. To me, this feels unnecessary at best and spiteful at worst, but I don't know what's gone on in these people's personal lives.

During this time, Bryan was uploading his songs to YouTube, but "Heading South," which ended up on Elisabeth, was the one that gained the most traction. He shot the video on his phone in 95 degree heat outside of his Navy barracks. His face is flushed red and covered in a thin sheen of sweat, but it hit the algorithm lottery anyway.

Things began to ramp up for Bryan around the time of his divorce. He made his Grand Ole Opry debut in April 2021, signed to Warner Records soon after, and was honorably discharged from the Navy ahead of his first tour that fall. He'd pull a Bon Iver after the tour and take some time to write in a Wisconsin cabin.

It was in that cabin where he'd write his signature hit "Something In The Orange," a song that's gone triple platinum on the Instagram stories of girls I went to high school with. A sleeper hit itself, "Orange" peaked at #10 after an eight month long climb. The track earned him his first Grammy nomination for Best Country Solo Performance.

"Something In The Orange" was the biggest track from Bryan's two hour long, triple LP major label debut American Heartbreak. The label clearly worked their magic, as his growth in popularity in the couple years following Heartbreak felt exponential. Even if you weren't a country fan, you began to hear his name over and over. You'd encounter his concertgoers in cowboy garb despite not being anywhere near the south.

Warner took Bryan on the tried and true collab circuit. In 2023 alone, he collaborated with Maggie Rogers, The War And Treaty, The Lumimeers, Sierra Ferrell, Noah Kahan, Bon Iver, and the home run amongst them, Kacey Musgraves. Bryan's first (and as of now only) #1 hit was achieved alongside Musgraves with "I Remember Everything," the lead single from his self titled fourth record.

It's a pretty standard country ballad duet, but it won Best Country Duo/Group Performance at the 2024 Grammys, Bryan's first (and as of now only).

Bryan landed his third top 10 hit in 2024 with "Pink Skies," the lead single of his fifth record, The Great American Bar Scene. Bryan's success with these singles is a true testament to the death of the music video. He doesn't make them, and he clearly doesn't need to.

In September 2025, Bryan would break the record for the largest attendance at a ticketed concert by a single headlining act in the US. He played the University of Michigan's "Big House" football stadium, playing to a crowd of 112,408. He broke the record by less than 2,000, taking the title from George Strait's performance at Texas A&M's football stadium the previous year.

Just a few weeks later, Bryan toed the line with the ever-hostile game of American politics when he posted a snippet of a song called "Bad News." The snippet included the line "I heard the cops came, cocky mother fuckers ain't they / And ICE is gonna come bust down your door." As one would imagine, the conservative wing of his audience got pissed, and Bryan was forced to concede by saying the song was not intended to be construed as partisan.

"Bad News" had a brief stint on the chart when released as a track on Bryan's sixth album, With Heaven on Top, peaking at #35. 18 of the album's 25 tracks would chart upon the record's release, but "Plastic Cigarette" would become the most popular among them.

"Plastic Cigarette" was a part of Bryan's live set for several months before its proper release, and it instantly became a fan favorite. It peaked at #13 upon its release, and has slowly crept down the chart over the past three months.

So with all that said...

Is the song any good?

Yeah! I've never really been a fan of Bryan's, as with most of mainstream country, but I found "Plastic Cigarette" charming and reminiscent of country's best attributes. His storytelling is vivid and feels authentic, but was unfortunately overshadowed by public drama he'd been embroiled in revolving his ex girlfriend, Barstool podcaster Brianna "Chickenfry" LaPaglia. That drama itself was overshadowed by why people were calling this lady "Chickenfry." As aptly put by Billy Dukes of Taste of Country, "[The drama] is obscure and to focus on it is to miss some pretty poetry during the first verse and chorus."

The lyrics are intimate and personal with allusions to alcoholism, his parents' divorce, and past fraught relationships. The instrumentation is sparse, with just acoustic guitar, bass, and drums accompanying Bryan's voice. The way he delivers "scribbled some poem that I know you'll never read" has this palpable bitterness that's uniquely humanizing. I'm sure it's a very touching song for longtime fans of Bryan's (I just don't happen to be one of those people), acting as a culmination of most of his life's struggles up until this point.

Where is it going?

"Plastic Cigarette" will likely remain a favorite amongst Bryan fans, and I don't blame them. As time goes on, the strange drama that looms over it will fade into a footnote. In terms of chart placement, it's Bryan's fourth most popular song, and I'm sure it'll be a staple of his live set for many years to come.

Unlike a lot of mainstays in mainstream country this decade, Bryan is someone that people feel good about rooting for. The similarities between Bryan and someone like Morgan Wallen start and end in their metadata. They're both white guys in country that make very long albums, but Bryan provides an alternative to country fans put off by Wallen's douchebag demeanor. He (for the most part) is controversy-free, and seems willing to speak out on issues that he cares about (his 2022 live album is titled All My Homies Hate Ticketmaster).

I really liked this quote from Rachel Brodsky's Stereogum column about Bryan from 2022: "Thematically, Bryan's songs evoke strong imagery of all-American pastimes, but not the ones America likes to advertise. Instead of July 4th barbecues, trucks, bars, girls, and beer, Bryan's songs are authentic and honest, capturing coming-of-age moments around love, family, grief, growth, heartache, work, and survival. The richest art both acknowledges and illustrates paradox, and Bryan flourishes in that space."

This illustration of his appeal from before his big break still holds truth today, a Grammy and a #1 hit later. Let's hope it stays that way – God knows country needs it.