Eric Church, a headliner at the Route 91 Harvest Festival in Las Vegas where dozens were killed last October, is slamming the National Rifle Association for not taking enough action to prevent mass shootings. "There are some things we can’t stop," Church told Rolling Stone, "like the disgruntled kid who takes his dad’s shotgun and walks into a high school. But we could have stopped the guy in Vegas." Church performed at the festival two nights before a gunman unleashed a rapid-fire barrage of bullets from the 32nd floor of a hotel down on the crowd of about 22,000, sending terrified concertgoers running for their lives. At least 58 people were killed and hundreds others injured, marking the worst mass shooting in modern American history. Authorities said the accused gunman, Stephen Craig Paddock, was solely responsible. They found thousands of rounds of ammunition and nearly two dozen weapons in his hotel room, mostly military-style rifles, including at least one that was modified with a bump stock to enable it to fire off rounds more rapidly. Church — who was nominated for the Country Music Association's Entertainer of the Year in 2017 — told the music magazine that while he owns about a half-dozen guns, he supports reforms such as closing gun-show loopholes, improving background checks, and banning bump stocks. "I’m a Second Amendment guy,” Church said. “That’s in the Constitution, it’s people’s right, and I don’t believe it’s negotiable. But nobody should have that many guns and that much ammunition and we don’t know about it. Nobody should have 21 AKs and 10,000 rounds of ammunition and we don’t know who they are." The NRA, he added, has "been a bit of a roadblock. I don’t care who you are — you shouldn’t have that kind of power over elected officials. To me it’s cut-and-dried: The gun-show [loophole] would not exist if it weren’t for the NRA, so at this point in time, if I was an NRA member, I would think I had more of a problem than the solution.” Church's comments were part of a wide-ranging interview that also touched on a health scare involving a blood clot in his chest, his disdain for Garth Brooks' lip-syncing and the 2016 election. Church did not cast a vote in 2016, but in past years has voted both Republican and Democrat. Church had already left Las Vegas when the massacre happened during fellow country music star Jason Aldean's performance. He found out via text that there was an active shooter. "Something broke in me that night, and it still hasn't healed," he said. Audience members run from the Route 91 Harvest country music festival after gunfire was heard on Oct. 1, 2017 in Las Vegas. David Becker / Getty Images While there is often an overlap between country music fans and gun ownership, Church said he has never been a member of the NRA. He said he expected to get blowback for attacking the gun rights organization. Fans were quick to react. One tweeted, "Eric Church just committed career suicide," and tagged the NRA. Others vowed to boycott his music. Church is not the only country music star to speak out about guns. Musician Caleb Keeter, who was at the festival when the shooting happened, tweeted a day later that he had been a lifelong Second Amendment supporter — until that night. "We need gun control RIGHT. NOW," he wrote. Several others performed a tribute to the Las Vegas victims at this year's Grammys. One, singer Maren Morris, criticized fellow country musicians for not speaking up. "There’s a lot of staying out of the conversation and sweeping it under the carpet so as not to polarize their audience,” she told the Guardian in January. Aldean has sent condolences to victims but hasn't waded into the gun control debate. “I’m not a politician,” Aldean told Entertainment Weekly in March. “I have my opinions, but what the hell do I know? I think everybody needs to sit down, stop pushing their own agendas, and figure out what will make it safer. When people can’t go to a damn movie or a concert and not worry about somebody shooting the place up, there’s a flaw in the system.”<doc-sep>Eric Church, one of the headliners at the Route 91 festival in Las Vegas — the scene of the 2017 massacre known as the deadliest mass shooting by an individual in modern U.S. history — is blaming the NRA for the attacks. Church performed at the festival two nights before the shooting, and the experience has changed his views on guns “a little,” he says. While fellow country singer Jason Aldean was performing, a gunman opened fire on the crowd, killing at least 58 people. Now Church is speaking out about the incident. While he says he considers himself a “Second Amendment guy,” referring to the right to bear arms, Church is blaming the NRA and gun lobbyists for being a “roadblock” to gun safety, according to a recent interview with Rolling Stone. Eric Church performing at the former Nokia Theatre in L.A. on Nov. 4, 2012. (Photo: Christopher Polk/Getty Images) “There are some things we can’t stop,” Church told the magazine. “Like the disgruntled kid who takes his dad’s shotgun and walks into a high school. But we could have stopped the guy in Vegas.” The “Desperate Man” singer added: “I blame the lobbyists. And the biggest in the gun world is the NRA.” “I don’t care who you are — you shouldn’t have that kind of power over elected officials. To me it’s cut-and-dried: The gun-show [loophole] would not exist if it weren’t for the NRA, so at this point in time, if I was an NRA member, I would think I had more of a problem than the solution,” Church said. “I would question myself real hard about what I wanted to be in the next three, four, five years.” He went on to add, “I don’t think our forefathers ever thought the right to bear arms was that.” Fans of the country music star are speaking up on social media. In this article, he also mentions his hatred of the NRA and his love for Bernie Sanders! I lost all respect for the Chief and have pulled my church choir membership! Hope he continues to be snubbed by Nashville. — Brigmann Bailey (@beetlehound1) July 26, 2018 @NRA @ericchurch your NRA comments are simple minded and wrong headed. Your music is going in the shredder tonight. Will never bye anything with your name on it again. Sending NRA $100 donation. — Tom Fassbinder 🇺🇸 (@FassbinderTom) July 26, 2018 Goodbye eric church. How about we take away your 1st amendment rights an you can't sing anymore. #2ndamendment — Surgeon911 (@seeknaygo1) July 26, 2018 Church is also being compared to the Dixie Chicks on social media. On March 20, 2003, the country music band performed in London, and while playing its opening song, “Travelin’ Soldier,” one of the Dixie Chicks commented on the invasion of Iraq. Story continues “Just so you know, we’re on the good side with y’all. We do not want this war, this violence, and we’re ashamed that the president of the United States is from Texas,” singer Natalie Maines said, referring to former President George W. Bush. Many fans shunned the country superstars after their comment. @ericchurch HEY MORON, NOW YOU CAN TOUR WITH THE DIXIE CHICKS — patrick hennigan (@pthennigan) July 26, 2018 However, others are supporting the country superstar on social media following his comments on the NRA. Eric Church is by far the most prominent and commercially relevant mainstream country artist to denounce the National Rifle Association. https://t.co/IX6OvExRwQ — Jonathan Bernstein (@jonbern) July 25, 2018 BREAKING Country Music Star Eric Church blamed the @NRA for the Las Vegas shooting, saying that they are being a "roadblock" to safety, in an interview with Rolling Stone. Thanks you @ericchurch for your honesty! I'm going to buy your album even though I hate country music! — Ed Krassenstein (@EdKrassen) July 26, 2018 Read more from Yahoo Lifestyle: Follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter for nonstop inspiration delivered fresh to your feed, every day.<doc-sep>
Country singer Eric Church discussed the October 2017 mass shooting that took place at the Las Vegas Route 91 Harvest Festival in a new interview with Rolling Stone. In the interview, Church, who was a headlining performer at the festival last year, placed blame on the National Rifle Association and gun lobbyists for being a "roadblock" to safety. “I blame the lobbyists. And the biggest in the gun world is the NRA," he said. Country singer Eric Church was one of the headlining performers at the Route 91 Harvest Festival in Las Vegas last October, where a gunman opened fire on a crowd during the performance of headliner Jason Aldean and killed 59 people in the deadliest mass shooting in US history. In a new interview with Rolling Stone, Church discussed the Vegas shooting and placed blame on the National Rifle Association and gun lobbyists for being a "roadblock" to safety. "There are some things we can’t stop," he said. "Like the disgruntled kid who takes his dad’s shotgun and walks into a high school. But we could have stopped the guy in Vegas.” He added: “I blame the lobbyists. And the biggest in the gun world is the NRA." Church, who paid tribute to the victims of the shooting in a moving performance at the Grand Ole Opry in October, days after the shooting, told Rolling Stone that he is not a member of the NRA, but that he considers himself "a Second Amendment guy." "I feel like they’ve been a bit of a roadblock," Church said of the NRA. "I don’t care who you are – you shouldn’t have that kind of power over elected officials. To me it’s cut-and-dried: The gun-show [loophole] would not exist if it weren’t for the NRA, so at this point in time, if I was an NRA member, I would think I had more of a problem than the solution. I would question myself real hard about what I wanted to be in the next three, four, five years." Church performed two days before the shooting took place in October and was not at the festival when it occurred. He said that the shooting changed his perspective on guns "a little." "As a gun guy, the number of rounds [the shooter] fired was un-f------believable to me," Church said. "I saw a video on YouTube from the police officer’s vest cam, and it sounded like an army was up there. I don’t think our forefathers ever thought the right to bear arms was that." The NRA did not respond to a request for comment from Business Insider. Read the interview here.