Jason Aldean took the stage in Las Vegas on Friday (September 21st) for the first time since the Route 91 Harvest Festival shooting nearly one year ago. The superstar was on the bill at the iHeartRadio Festival, where before playing his set he greeted dozens of Vegas police officers, EMTs and firefighters on stage at the T-Mobile Arena. They were greeted by thunderous applause, and Jason told the crowd, “On behalf of myself and my family and the country music community, I want to say thank you to the city of Las Vegas for your courage, strength and kindness. Tonight we are all proud to be Vegas strong.”
Before the show, Jason told reporters backstage, "Being back in Vegas this close to the anniversary of it is, at times, a little weird. In another sense, it's nice to be back. This is really our first performance we've had here since then. Tonight is going to be another step in getting through all that stuff."
The first anniversary of the Las Vegas shooting is on October 1st. Fifty-eight people were killed and more than 500 were injured.