Chris Young Opens First Show Since Vegas Shooting With ‘Go Rest High on That Mountain’ [Watch]
Chris Young had a show on Wednesday night (Oct. 4) at the Big Fresno Fair in Fresno, Calif. It was his first appearance since Route 91 Harvest Festival, where 58 people were shot and killed and more than 500 injured.
Young was at the Las Vegas festival when a lone gunman attacked 22,000 country fans as they were watching Jason Aldean's headlining set. He was backstage, and he had to seek cover from the bullets as they rained down from a Mandalay Bay hotel room, where the shooter was stationed.
He was emotionally scarred by the event, and as artists often do, he turned to music to help begin the healing process. Young opened his set on Wednesday with a cover of Vince Gill's 1994 ballad “Go Rest High on That Mountain."
.@ChrisYoungMusic dedicates first song by @vincegill at @BigFresnoFair to victims of #LasVagasShooting @ABC30 pic.twitter.com/n3n6DvToJr
— Cory James (@CoryABC30) October 5, 2017
He also dedicated his performance to the victims of Sunday’s tragedy, which has become the deadliest mass shooting in modern American history.
“I was in Vegas the other night," Young said at the start of his performance. "I heard this song a lot, I’ve never attempted to sing it because I have a huge amount of respect for the guy who did it originally, but I’m going to give it my best."
"Music can heal," he added. Young posted a video message to his social media pages earlier that day discussing the event that unfolded on Sunday.
“People lost their lives, people were injured, and I’m so heartbroken over that,” he says. “My thoughts are with those families and everyone who had to go through that ordeal. That should never happen at a concert."
Adds Young, “I hugged my family and talked about what I was going to do this week as far as the show I’m going to play tonight, but I’m a musician and music can heal.”
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