advertisement

Eric Church breaks down in tribute to Vegas shooting victims

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - Country star Eric Church struggled to hold back tears in a tribute to the victims of the mass shooting at a country music festival in Las Vegas and debuted a song he wrote in their honor called "Why Not Me."

Church was a headliner at the Route 91 Harvest Festival two days before a gunman opened fire on a crowd of thousands Sunday night.

During his performance Wednesday at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, Tennessee, Church declared: "Those were my people. Those were my fans."

The singer pointed out two seats left empty in the Opry house for Sonny Melton, of Paris, Tennessee, who died, and his wife, Heather, who survived. He said no amount of bullets can take away his memories of those fans.

Article Comments
Guidelines: Keep it civil and on topic; no profanity, vulgarity, slurs or personal attacks. People who harass others or joke about tragedies will be blocked. If a comment violates these standards or our terms of service, click the "flag" link in the lower-right corner of the comment box. To find our more, read our FAQ.