In almost hour-long interview, 30-year-old rapper, Travis Scott had an in depth interview on what transpired on his Nov. 5 Astroworld interview. Speaking to Charlamagne tha God, Travis Scott described that since the events of Nov. 5 he has been on an “emotional rollercoaster.”
His Astroworld festival left 10 people dead and hundreds others injured. On the first sit-down interview released on You Tube on Thursday December 9, Scott hoped that the interview would be an opportunity for him to speak to his fans and their families.
“It gets so hard because, you know, I always feel connected with my fans. I went through something, fans went through something, people’s parents went through something,” he said.
Travis Scott expressed that the unfortunate incident, not only affected him but the community and city at large. “It really hurts, it hurts community, it hurts a city. It’s just been a lot of thoughts, a lot of feelings, a lot of grieving, you know just trying to wrap my head around it,” he continued.
The rapper faces a consolidated law suit for damages of some 2,800 concert goers of up to $10 Billion. During the interview, the rapper reiterated what his defense lawyer, Edwin McPherson, said that he was oblivious of what was going on until minutes to the press conference.
“It wasn’t really until like minutes until the press conference until I figured out exactly what happened,” Scott said. “Even after the show, you’re just kind of hearing things, but I didn’t know the exact details.
When asked why his concert went on for another forty minutes after officials declared it a mass casualty event, Scott said that it wasn’t clearly communicated to him what was going on.
“They told me, ‘Right after the guests get on stage, we’re going to end the show.’ And that’s what we did. Other than that there was no communication,” Scott said.
The rapper also explained that his point of view on the stage, the loud music, blinding lights, pyro and other factors made it impossible to know what was going on stage.
“You can only help what you can see and whatever you are told, whenever they tell you to stop, you stop,” he said.
Houston Police Chief Troy Finner said that he had met with the rapper in his trailer in the days leading to the concert and voiced his safety concerns. During the interview, talked on safety but removed any blame himself stating that that was the responsibility of “professionals.”
“As an artist, you just do the creative. And this to be my festival, I got to bring artists, creatively produce it. We just trust the professionals to make sure people are taken care of and leaving safely.”
Scott in the interview said that he could only control what was happening on the stage. The crowd was out of his control and within the professional’s control.
“I just can control what I can on the stage, and you know have the professionals control what they can in the crowd. As an artist it’s hard because you want to have the best experiences, you link with professionals to handle that side of it. You want to know what’s going on and I think that’s what we got to figure out what happened, how’d it happen.”
When Charlamagne pressed the rapper on who he thought was to blame for the Astroworld tragedy, Scott remained very vague, stating that he too was trying to understand what happened.
“Something tragic happened here. What I’ve just been trying to get to the bottom of is what happened. I think the families are owed that. I think the families are owed that. I think the community is owed that—to know what happened here. I don’t want to speak too soon, I just want to know what happened,” he said.
The rapper is notorious for being rowdy during his concerts and once in 2015 he was arrested for the same during a Chicago concert. When asked by Charlamagne whether his “raging” culture contributed to the events of the Astroworld, the rapper disagreed.
“No, I think it’s something I’ve been working on for a while of just creating these experiences.”
Following the Astroworld concert, Travis Scott offered to cover funeral expenses for families that lost loved ones at the concert. However, some family members turned down his offer, something the rapper says he understands.
“At the time they’re grieving and trying to find understanding, they want answers. I’ve got to just continue to show up for that.”
Scott also had a message to all grieving families.
“I’m in this with you guys and I love you, and I’ll always be there to help you guys heal through this,” he said. “It’s not just a right-now thing, it’s a forever thing. These people who come on the show are my family. I’ve always had that connection to people who listened to the music or came to my shows.”
Reference
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/travis-scott-speaks-first-interview-astroworld-tragedy-rcna8176
