Rock and Roll Hall of Fame member Tom Petty, 66, died on Monday, Oct. 2 at 8:40 p.m. PT. at UCLA Santa Monica Hospital after being found unresponsive on Sunday, Oct. 1.
Petty rose to fame in the 1970s as the frontman for Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, selling more than 80 million albums over his 40-plus-year career and recording such hits as “I Won’t Back Down,” “Runnin’ Down a Dream,” “Free Fallin’” and more.
Petty’s music transcended the rock genre, as evidenced by the outpouring of messages posted on social media by many country artists, including Shania Twain, Reba McEntire, Midland, Jason Isbell, the Oak Ridge Boys and more.
Thanks for giving me the soundtrack of my youth. Rest in peace Tom Petty. This has been a rough one. Love to al… https://t.co/VApwkJP6od pic.twitter.com/b3usHKCdcz
— Midland (@MidlandOfficial) October 3, 2017
Music lost another legend today #RIPTomPetty pic.twitter.com/zSaibzqoUW
— Rodney Atkins (@RodneyAtkins) October 3, 2017
Tom Petty has indeed passed on… very sad … pic.twitter.com/s895c9BgJu
— The Oak Ridge Boys (@oakridgeboys) October 3, 2017
RiP Tom Petty. So terrible. @Col_JonHensley would be devastated.
— Shooter Jennings (@ShooterJennings) October 2, 2017
Now, Tom Petty. Today sucks. RIP to my favorite rocker ever. Regret I never saw him live. Prayers go out to his family…
— Justin Moore (@JustinColeMoore) October 2, 2017
I believe @tompetty is in Heaven entertaining the beautiful souls that were lost last night in #Vegas. That’s what I believe right now.
— Maggie Rose (@IAmMaggieRose) October 2, 2017
More bad news on an already sad day #RIPTomPetty
— The Oak Ridge Boys (@oakridgeboys) October 2, 2017
No……not Tom Petty.
— Martina McBride (@martinamcbride) October 2, 2017
I can’t think of an important moment in my life without an accompanying Tom Petty song. Every night we walk off stage to his music. So sad.
— Jason IsBOO (@JasonIsbell) October 2, 2017
Just when I thought today could not get any worse…
R.I.P. Tom Petty. Thank you for your beautiful music and inspiration.— Kid Rock (@KidRock) October 2, 2017
So sad to hear of the passing of Tom Petty. Such an incredible, inspiring artist. I’ll treasure fond memories of our time spent together this past summer ❤ pic.twitter.com/HvSgARxzm3
— Shania Twain (@ShaniaTwain) October 2, 2017
Fly safe, Tom. Thankyou for your magic. Tell the angels we need a hand down here.
— Clare Bowen (@clarembee) October 2, 2017
Been doing #tompetty You Wreck Me on the @cmorganmusic #americanstoriestour with @jasonhoard… https://t.co/lAZjg9XztN
— mac powell (@macpowell) October 3, 2017
