Jason Aldean Mourns Longtime Friend, Security Guard Ryan Fleming

Ryan Fleming, Jason Aldean‘s security guard and longtime friend, has died. The country star announced the news on social media on Wednesday (Aug. 25), sharing several photos of Fleming along with words of remembrance.

Fleming, also known as “Rhino,” and Aldean grew up together in Georgia; prior to working for the singer, Fleming was a bouncer at a local bar in Macon and also worked for the local sheriff. “When it came time for me to hire a security guy that I knew would always look out for me and my family, there was no question for me that person was Rhino,” Aldean writes.

In fact, Fleming was the person who pulled Aldean offstage during the shooting at the 2017 Route 91 Harvest Festival in Las Vegas, Nev. Rhino, Aldean says of that night, “put his life in danger to take care of me and my crew.”

“He came out and traveled the world with us, and for years, if [you] saw me, Rhino wasn’t too far away,” Aldean says. “He was a good man and an even better friend.”

A number of Aldean’s friends and former tourmates — Chuck Wicks, Russell Dickerson and others — commented on Aldean’s post, sending condolences. Aldean’s wife Brittany also honored Fleming with an Instagram post of her own.

“What a ride we were on … traveling the world, joking every step of the way. I will love and miss you forever,” she writes. “Thank you for protecting us. You are family, forever and always.”

Fleming’s cause of death has not been revealed.