During an exclusive interview with the Rock Candy Magazine, Lynyrd Skynyrd lead vocalist Johnny Van Zant shared the reasons behind their decision to continue their work after the untimely death of founding member and guitarist Gary Rossington back in March, according to Blabbermouth.

During the interview with Rock Candy editor Howard Johnson, Johnny Van Zant shared that the late guitarist’s wife “sealed the deal.” He said that “Dale has been singing backing vocals with Skynyrd for years and years, ever since the tribute tour that brought the band back together in 1987.” After his death, his wife Dale said to them “This is what Gary did and he would want you guys to carry on.” And so now they feel the need to carry on his legacy. “Gary was out there carrying the legacy for the original guys — for Ronnie and Allen, for Billy and Leon — for so many years out of respect for what they did. Now I think he deserves the same kind of respect from us.”

Guitarist Rickey Medlocke also shared his thoughts on the matter. He said that Gary’s death has broke his heart. “t’s only now that I’ve got to the point where I can talk about it and think about the good old days and all the good times we had together. So it’s very emotional for me to get up on stage and play, and to look across and not see Gary doing his thing.” However, he wants to honor his friend by continuing their work. “But I believe it’s important to keep SKYNYRD’s music alive and not let it just fade away. It’s important for all of us to honor the memories of all the other guys who went before us in this band. I’m just very proud and very honored to be doing that.”

Van Zant added on the late guitarist’s thoughts on live performances. “Gary felt that in truth Skynyrd had always been about the live performance,” and that “…everyone still loves getting out there and playing the music. We feel like a family when we’re out there together, and we all want to go out there again and really give Gary his due.”

Read about their upcoming tour here.