In October of 2017, the deadliest mass shooting in American history took place as Jason Aldean was on stage at the Route 91 Harvest Festival in Las Vegas. 58 people were killed in the attack, and a 59th died earlier this year of her injuries.
Jason Aldean returned to Vegas afterward to perform at both the ACM Awards and our iHeartRadio Music Festival, but this past Friday night, he performed his first full concert in Las Vegas since the shootings as he kicked off a three show mini-residency at the Park MGM. A short way into his set, Jason addressed the survivors of Route 91 that were in the crowd, saying “Tonight’s a really special night for us. We got a lot of people in the crowd who are family to us, so welcome everyone from Route 91. We’re glad to see you guys out. It’s good to be back here in Las Vegas. It’s our first show back and make no mistake about it tonight...make no mistake about it tonight...we came back to blow it out for you guys tonight, alright?”
But while Jason put on a stellar show, there is one thing that happened that will have everyone talking for a long time. During “Any Ol’ Barstool,” a man in a wheelchair wearing a Route 91 shirt and holding an American flag was lifted up by concertgoers as the crowd went wild. Jason saw him and pointed at him, saying "my man."
Jason went on to finish his show with "When She Says Baby," which was the song he was playing when the shootings broke out, and he followed it up with his version of Tom Petty's "I Won't Back Down," which he performed one week after the shootings on Saturday Night Live.