It's a tragedy for anyone to lose a brother, but Hellyeah / ex-Pantera drummer Vinnie Paul was witness to the murder of 'Dimebag' Darrell Abbott while the two were performing onstage with Damageplan in 2004. Vinnie Paul, understandably, may never get over his brother's death, but in a new interview, the drummer claims to have "found peace," while also detailing Dimebag's final days before his tragic slaying.

On Dec. 8, 2004, Dimebag was shot dead by a crazed gunman who rushed the small Alrosa Villa club stage in Columbus, Ohio. After taking another individual hostage, the gunman was killed by officer James Niggemeyer, who risked his life to prevent further casualties. Everything changed after Dime was killed, demanding a greater presence of security at rock and metal shows worldwide.

While speaking with Fozzy singer / wrestling legend Chris Jericho on the latter's podcast, 'Talk is Jericho,' Vinnie Paul opened up about his current feelings on Dime's death nearly 10 years later. "The thing that turned him on the most in this world was putting a smile on other people's faces," Vinnie said. "It didn't matter where it was, when it was, how it was, whether it was playing his guitar, whether it was shaking a hand, signing an autograph, giving him a pick, just saying hi. That was the most important thing in his life — making other people smile."

He went on to describe Dimebag's final days before his death as follows: "I remember the last [full] show we ever played together with Damageplan, we played in Buffalo, New York, and I wanted to… Actually, we wanted to go to the casino in Niagara Falls and he was really smoked. We had two more shows left. We were gonna do Mancow's show in Chicago the next day. And I said, 'Dime, man, let's go to the casino, man.' And he was, like, 'Man, Vinnie, I'm really, really tired. I wanna kill these last two shows. I'm gonna go home and make the next Damageplan record. I wanna kill this.' He goes, 'You go have a good time, man. I'll see you in a little bit.' So me and Mayhem, our security guy that got killed that night [in Columbus], went with me, and we went to the casino and we had a great time. And the bus pulled up about 3 o'clock in the morning to get us, and I came on the bus, and there was a full party going on in the front lounge. And I'm, like, 'What is going on in here?' It was Dime and there was, like, 12 people I'd never seen in my life. And I said, 'Dime, I thought you were [tired].' And he goes, 'Dude, I couldn't let these people down, man. They wanted to party tonight, man.' And that's how my brother was. He just would not let people down."

As for the night Dime was killed, Vinnie adds, "It was a really hardcore, tragic event, and the guy wanted to kill me, too. And somehow or another, I was lucky enough to escape that, and I'm still here, and I will do everything and anything I can to carry on the legacy and the tradition that my brother always had … I don't wanna remember it, I don't wanna think about it. It's hard. It's hard. But I've found peace." [via Blabbermouth]

Hellyeah's latest album, 'Blood for Blood,' is now available. To grab a copy of the album, click here. The band is currently invading the U.S. with Nothing More. Check out those tour dates here.

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