On Friday night (Nov. 5) panic struck the Astroworld music festival in Houston when the massive crowd began to surge forward. As a result, at least 8 festival attendees are dead and dozens injured.
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Since the tragedy, the world has learned more about the event.
On Saturday (Nov. 6), rapper Travis Scott who was performing when the massive festival crowd began to become unruly and trample fellow attendees, trying to get closer to the stage, issued a statement, saying he was “Devastated.”
The L.A. Times reported that Scott has a history of rowdy shows. The paper’s music writer, August Brown, tweeted, “Even before the tragic stampede that killed 8 at Houston’s Astroworld festival, Travis Scott had a history of inciting fans into intense, reckless behavior at concerts. It’s part of his allure, but now the consequences are devastating.”
Now Pitchfork and Billboard are reporting that a concertgoer has filed suit against Scott and Live Nation.
On Sunday (Nov. 7), Scott’s girlfriend and reality star Kylie Jenner echoed Scott’s statement and added that she and Scott were only notified after the concert of the horrible news. Jenner, who is currently pregnant with her and Scott’s second child, and who was at the deadly show in Houston, wrote in an Instagram story, according to Insider:
“I want to make it clear we weren’t aware of any fatalities until the news came out after the show and in no world would have continued filming or performing.
“Travis and I are broken and devastated. My thoughts and prayers are with all who lost their lives, were injured, or affected in any way by yesterday’s events.
“And also for Travis who I know cares deeply for his fans and the Houston community, I am sending my deepest condolences to all the families during this difficult time and will be praying for the healing of everyone who has been impacted.”
Scott, who did make attempts to stop the show before its planned conclusion, also shared this video on social media below, in which he says, among other things, that he sends his prayers to the folks who lost their lives and their families.
“I just want to send out prayers to the ones that was lost last night. We are actually working right now to identify the families so we can help assist them through this tough time. My fans really mean the world to me and I always want to leave them with a positive experience. Anytime I can make out anything that’s going on, I stop the show and help them get the help they need. I could just never imagine this in a regular situation. We’ve been working closely with everyone to just try and get to the bottom of this.”
He added, “If you have any information please just contact the local authorities. Everybody continue to just keep your prayers. I’m honestly just devastated. I could never imagine like this just happening. I’m gonna do everything I can to keep you guys updated, just keep you guys informed of what’s going on. Love you all.”
According to The Houston Chronicle, the Astroworld Festival producer has faced federal scrutiny and lawsuits over past incidents involving safety concerns. Over the past few days, concert organizers have received much criticism from fans, attendees and the internet for not stopping the show earlier.
Among the people who lost their lives on Friday were a 14 and 16-year-old. In total eight people died and more than 300 reported injuries.
Festival attendee, Alleighya Odom, who is 21 years old, told NBC, “It was scary, like, genuinely,” adding, the crowd “was like this force on my back, this continuous force. I started looking around, and there’s people on the ground. There’s people looking at me, like, scared, eyes wild, like, ‘Please help me.‘”
Photo by Gary Miller/Getty Image
