Country singer Luke Bryan has hit back at online critics who accused him of using artificial intelligence to write his new single "Fish Hunt Golf Drink." Speaking on the "This Past Weekend with Theo Von" podcast, Bryan said a false "narrative" had taken hold on social media, with a small number of vocal users convincing others that the song was AI-generated, regardless of whether they actually liked the track or him as an artist.

Bryan, 50, said the backlash had become "pretty crazy," recalling comments from people telling him they hated him, to which he responded he'd "knock the s— out of" them if he saw them in person, though he later softened this by noting many critics were teenagers. He and his team have consistently denied the AI claims: he told NBC4 in June that the accusations were "completely false," while songwriters Chase McGill and Matt Dragstrem told Rolling Stone the song came from an organic exchange of emojis between Bryan and a friend, insisting Bryan is "the least artificial person" they know.