Three years after the mass shooting at the Route 91 music festival in Las Vegas, Brittany Aldean is speaking out about the bond shared between her and the other survivors.
On Instagram, Brittany—the wife of country singer Jason Aldean, who performed at the festival—penned an emotional note alongside a photo of a tribute to the 59 lives lost.
"On one hand it seems like an eternity ago, a nightmare you try to forget," she shared. "On the other hand it's vividness makes it seem like it was yesterday."
At the time, Brittany was eight months pregnant with the couple's son Memphis. He was born two months to the day after the shooting.
"I used to live in Vegas so I had a bunch of friends at the show... little did we know our lives would change forever," Brittany wrote. "The sound, the chaos, the overwhelming sadness and heartache... it's something that never leaves you."
She added that the survivors—her "Route 91 family— are now "forever bonded."
"An experience that thankfully only certain people know," Brittany shared. "We have LOVED meeting so many of you who were effected on this day, years ago. Our hearts still break for the families who lost a loved one."
Back in 2017, country superstar Jason was performing at the festival when a gunman opened fire on the crowd from the 32nd window of the nearby Mandalay Bay hotel. The Route 91 festival has not taken place since the shooting.
Jason returned to Vegas for a full concert for the first time since the shooting in December of 2019. He met with Route 91 survivors prior to taking the stage.
"Tonight's a really special night for us. We got a lot of people in the crowd who are family to us, so welcome everyone from Route 91. We're glad to see you guys out," he told the crowd at the time. "Make no mistake about it tonight, we came back to blow it out for you guys tonight, alright?"