Travis Scott does not feel responsible for the drama that took place during his show at the Astroworld festival. The artist tells this in his first major interview since the tragedy.
“Yes, I am the face of the festival,” Scott says when asked by radio host Charlamagne tha God whether he feels responsible for the fateful outcome of the performance. During the show, in which Drake was also on stage, visitors were jostled with each other, resulting in 8 deaths and more than 25 seriously injured. The rapper is said to have stopped the performance too late.
“But as an artist you are mainly concerned with the creative aspect of a show, not with the safety and logistics. My responsibility is limited to figuring out what exactly went wrong and how we can prevent this in the future.” Scott does not say who he believes is responsible for the events.
The rapper talks to the presenter about the drama for almost an hour. He says that during the show and afterwards he had no idea what exactly was going on. “I couldn’t see the audience well. When I noticed there was a fuss, I stopped a few times.” Scott thought it was “just about people passing out”. “But that happens more often.”
What we know about the fatal situation during Astroworld Festival
- Ten people, including minors, were killed. Another 300 people were injured.
- It is not yet clear what exactly happened. What is known is that the public tried to push forward and that people were jostled. Police have said the investigation could take months.
- The police narcotics department is also involved in the investigation, because there are rumors that someone injected festival visitors with drugs.
- More than 140 charges have been filed so far against Travis Scott and the further organization of the Astroworld festival. They demand millions in total.
- The artist has announced that all festival goers will refund their ticket money. He has also offered to reimburse the funeral expenses of the deceased.
He was warned through his earpiece to stop his performance. “But I didn’t have the impression that there was an emergency going on.”
It wasn’t until just before the press conference, in which it was said that there had been deaths and injuries during the show, that the artist learned exactly what was going on.
Scott goes on to say that he has personal contact with people who have lost a loved one because of the festival drama. “I always want to be there for them. I want to make sure that this never happens again and that I also take a leading role in this.” He proposes that festival visitors wear a wristband that monitors their location and health.