Jason Aldean sat down with Today’s Sheinelle Jones for his first interview since a gunman killed 58 people and injured more than 500 while he was performing onstage at the Route 91 Harvest festival in Las Vegas on Oct. 1.

When the shooting initially began, Jason told Sheinelle he believed one of the stage speakers had blown out. It was only after Jason’s guitar player alerted him to leave the stage that he realized there was a major problem.

“Everybody just kind of panicked, and didn’t really know where to go, or what to do,” Jason said to Today. “It was just kind of crazy, pandemonium.”

After flying home to spend time with his family, Jason paid tribute to the shooting victims by performing on Saturday Night Live on Oct. 7. Jason resumed his They Don’t Know Tour on Oct. 12 after canceling three dates.

“Honestly, being back on stage probably helped us more than anything, which is crazy,” Jason said.

Watch Jason’s entire Today interview, which also features Dierks Bentley and Lady Antebellum.