This week must have been unspeakably difficult for Jason Aldean.
He was, of course, the performer on stage at the Route 91 Harvest Festival in Las Vegas when a man decided to open fire on the crowd, killing over 50 people and wounding over 500.
When the gunshots began, he rushed offstage, and he reported soon after that he and his crew were safe, but obviously heartbroken about what had happened.
But as traumatized as he must be, he still managed to make an appearance on last night"s episode of Saturday Night Live.
This week, Jason did the show"s cold open, and instead of the usual skit, he spoke directly to the audience and the cameras.
"This week, we witnessed one of the worst tragedies in American history," he began.
"Like everyone, I"m struggling to understand what happened that night, and how to pick up the pieces and start to heal."
"So many people are hurting. They"re our children, parents, brothers, sisters, friends — they"re all part of our family."
"So I want to say to them, we hurt for you, we hurt with you," he continued. "We can be sure that we"re gonna walk through these tough times together, every step of the way."
Because, Jason said, "When America is at its best, our bond and our spirit, it"s unbreakable."
And then, because his statement wasn"t touching enough, he launched into a song.
The song he decided to play?
"I Won"t Back Down," the incredibly fitting song by the late, great Tom Petty, whose death made this week even tougher than it already was.
Watch Jason"s full speech and performance in the video below:
