Dozens of Country Music artists took the stage in Las Vegas prior to the shooting on Sunday night, and one of those acts was Big & Rich, who were on the stage where shots rang out about an hour and a half before chaos ensued.
"It was one of the best shows, one of the best crowds we'd ever seen in our entire lives," Big Kenny of Big & Rich said.
At the time of the shooting, Big Kenny and John Rich were at Rich's bar after playing the festival. When they heard that there was a shooting, there was a lot of confusion, and it was unclear if there were multiple shooters. Because of that, the bar was put on lockdown, and an off-duty police officer stepped up to protect everyone.
"He said, 'I'm here from another state. I don't have a firearm here. Does anyone?' And John Said, 'Yes, I have a carry permit and I have a firearm,' and the officer asked ifh e could have it, then he would hold point on the door going into that club," Big Kenny explained.
Luckily, that extra security wasn't necessary, but soon, Big & Rich learned the scope of the shooting.
"It wasn't just a shooter, it was carnage going on at that time, and then we started seeing pictures back," Big Kenny said. "It was a war zone there, just a horrific event."
Big Kenny later learned that his hotel room was just 3 floors below the man who fired guns with no regard to human life.
"When I was sitting there in my room that afternoon and looking out over this beautiful venue and seeing all the awesome fans coming, rolling ni there and getting excited about going there and playing for them, I had no idea that right up there over my head was a man who had such evil intent in his mind," Big Kenny said.
Following the shooting, Big & Rich shared a video on social media from the festival of people singing "God Bless America" with the duo, saying it's time for us all to unify.
"We're gonna shine the light of love stronger than we ever have, and that's what will snuff out all the darkness we possibly can in our lifetimes, and the only thing that will."
