Jason Aldean mourns the death of longtime friend and security guard who pulled him off stage during 2017 mass shooting in Las Vegas
Jason Aldean is grieving the loss of his longtime friend who also worked as his security guard for many years when he would head out on tour.
On Wednesday, the country music star, 44, took to Instagram and shared a heartbreaking tribute to Ryan ‘Rhino’ Fleming, which included a series of photos of them out on the road over the years, following his death.
‘Man this is a hard post to write. We lost one of our boys today,’ Aldean began in the caption of the photos with obvious emotion seeping out from his words.
In mourning: Country music star Jason Aldean is paying tribute to his longtime friend and security guard Ryan ‘Rhino’ Fleming on Instagram, following his death; he’s the man who pulled him off the stage and to safety during the 2017 Las Vegas shooting
Aldean proceeded to share details about his friend and their close relationship.
‘Ryan Fleming aka @rhinolin3 was a friend I grew up with in Georgia. He was a bouncer at our favorite bar in Macon when he was 18, then went to work for the Sheriff’s department as he got older,’ The Truth singer continued.
‘When it came time for me to hire a security guy that I knew would always look out for me and my family, There was no question for me that person was Rhino. He came out and traveled the world with us and for years if u saw me, Rhino wasn’t too far away.’
Friends and colleagues: The country music star (center), 44, revealed Rhino (right) was with him out on tour for many years as his security guard
Trusted man of honor: The Truth singer shared that he knew Rhino would always look out for him and my family
Man of courage: Aldean went on to reveal that Rhino was the man who pulled him off the stage when gunfire erupted at the Route 91 Harvest Country music festival is Las Vegas on October 1, 2017 that killed 60 people and injured nearly 900 more
Aldean went on to reveal that Rhino was at the side of the stage when gunfire erupted while he was performing at the Route 91 Harvest Country music festival in Las Vegas on the evening of October 1, 2017.
‘He was the person who pulled me offstage during the Route 91 shooting and put his life in danger to take care of me and my crew,’ he explained.
The shooter, a 64-year-old man from Mesquite, Nevada, opened fire on the crowd of fans from his 32nd floor suite of the Mandalay Bay Hotel.
In the end, 60 people were killed, more than 400 were wounded, but with the ensuing panic the injuries totaled 867.
Brave: Aldean credited Rhino with helping save the lives of himself and crew members during the Las Vegas mass shooting
Comrade: Rhino was alway close by the country music singer and his family while out on tour
Heartbreaking: ‘We will all miss you brother and thank you for having my back all these years. We love ya Rhino! RIP,’ Aldean ended his initial post
After crediting Rhino with helping save the lives of himself and crew members, Aldean called his old pal ‘a good man and even better friend.’
Her ended the post, writing, ‘We will all miss you brother and thank you for having my back all these years. We love ya Rhino! RIP.’
Not long later, Aldean shared a photo of Rhino watching him perform from the side of the stage, like he had done so many times during their life together out on tour.
‘Thank you Rhino! See ya down the road one day bro. RIP,’ he wrote in the caption along with a red heart emoji.
So far Aldean has not released any statement surrounding Ryan Fleming’s cause of death.
RIP: Not long after the initial tribute, Aldean shared a photo of Rhino watching him perform from the side of the stage, like he had done so many times during their life together out on tour