Zach Bryan Angry Lyric About 'Exes' Is Part of Act, Not Shot at Brianna LaPaglia

Zach Bryan has some folks thinking his onstage outburst while singing about "exes" was a direct shot at Brianna "Chickenfry" LaPaglia ... but it's been part of his act since long before their nasty split.

The country star -- who has been at the center of a contentious breakup with the Barstool Sports personality -- hit the road for the next leg of his "Quittin' Time" tour, making his first stop since August in Edmonton, Canada over the weekend.

All eyes were on Zach during the show, as the crooner has been noticeably tight-lipped amid Brianna's many claims of abuse and infidelity in the weeks following their breakup.

Check out the clip ... ZB appeared to transmit a subtle message to BL during his performance of "Burn, Burn, Burn" ... angrily staring down the crowd and singing out, "My exes hate me and my friends all miss me."

Watch the video ... Zach wrapped up the lyric with a guttural scream, before transitioning to a more peaceful take on his song.

Unsurprisingly, the performance has already prompted a mixed reaction online ... with some fans saying they were "scared" of his reaction.

But, we did some digging and found out Zach's been doing this same thing on tour for a while now ... even before he pulled the plug with Brianna.

So, this isn't a commentary on their split ... as lots of folks online believed.

Zach announced his breakup from Brianna at the end of October, citing he had an "incredibly hard year" in the personal message. Brianna then responded to the announcement by revealing she was blindsided by his decision to make their split public ... later accusing him of emotional abuse and trying to get her to sign a $12 million NDA.