Troy Gentry’s Friend Remembers His Enthusiastic Personality on Stage Days Before His Death

Many celebrities and musicians have shared their thoughts and memories of the late Troy Gentry in the wake of his death. Now, one of his friends is speaking on his onstage charisma that charmed audiences for decades.

Holly Gleason, the former publicist for Montgomery Gentry, saw the group’s Sunday concert at the Tequila Bay Country Music Festival in Miami and said Gentry was at the top of his game.

“He was on that stage, guitars blazing, trading vocals with his partner Eddie — and they made it feel like the biggest party in a place that knows how to party,” Gleason told People. “Hot and sweltering as it was, the crowd was up, dancing and yowling and throwing down to ‘Hillbilly Shoes,’ ‘Gone’ and Charlie Daniels’ ‘All Night Long.’

“That’s the thing about Troy, it was all in good fun. It all rocked, and it made people feel more dangerous than they were, yet somehow kept them safe as new kittens. To be able to walk that line, maybe it truly does take hillbilly shoes.”

She also reflected on her friend’s personality, which was all about loving life.

“Nobody loved life more than Troy Gentry,” Gleason said. “Whatever adventure, all night party or hardcore hillbilly song, he was up for it.”

Gentry died on Friday in a helicopter crash at the Flying W Airport in Medford, New Jersey. He was 50.