Travis Scott is definitely one of the most hyped and prominent artists of our time. That is very much a given fact, but as the saying goes, “with great power comes great responsibility.” As someone who has the power to command his fans at a stroke of a hand, he indeed has that gift. You can almost say he is God-like to some people.
Travis Scott performs at Day 1 of the Astroworld Music Festival at NRG Park on Friday, Nov. 5, 2021, in Houston. (Photo by Amy Harris/Invision/AP)
Well, last Friday’s (November 5) Astroworld concert in Houston, Texas has proven that once again as the venue was filled to the hilt. It was insane–not in the positive sense as it became one of the most disturbing tragedies not only in hip-hop but live entertainment as well.
Considering Travis Scott’s stature and reach, he could have done things differently both as an organizer and a performer as it was one of the most disturbing events in live concert history as at least eight people were killed and many were injured from the event.
The victims primarily in the 14-27-year-old range were announced in a news conference the following day by Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner.
“There are a lot of unanswered questions, over the next several days, several weeks could be even longer, we’ll take an in-depth look at everything that took place, why it took place, what steps we can do moving forward to mitigate an incident of this kind from taking place.”
25 people were taken to the hospital and among them, 13 remain hospitalized- five of them are under 18 years old.
From Raging to Tragedy
It’s reported that about 50,000 people were in attendance at the sold-out Astroworld Festival at NRG Park, and the riot started at around 9pm. In a viral video from the event, Travis Scott was seen pausing and looking on confused as an ambulance was struggling to make its way in the middle of a crazily packed crowd. As much as it was confusing to him, he had the power then and there to pause the said concert but he went on which was disturbing.
The event company behind the concert, Live Nation, issued a statement saying they were “heartbroken for those lost and impacted.”
“We will continue working to provide as much information and assistance as possible to the local authorities as they investigate the situation,” the statement said.
Taking Responsibility
As with all concert outfits, organizers and performers, there is a certain amount of responsibility that comes with it. Clearly, most live acts with chaotic crowds know when the hell to break it up. This is very much disturbing as we see Travis not really doing much in terms of crowd control. These are his fans, eager people who wanted to have a good time and he can’t even do anything.
Of course, “raging” is a part of Travis’ concert, but the said performer has been known to risk crowd safety and command crowds to go crazy without even considering their safety. Hell, he can go all in and ask the crowd to beat someone up for a pair of shoes but can’t stop mid-song for an ambulance?
Also, another concern was were safety protocols really observed? Was everyone in attendance fully vaccinated? All those boil down to responsibility and not just being cool in the eyes of kids. For sure, there will always be the dangerous element to concerts that make them exciting, but that doesn’t mean it should actually happen and put paying crowds at risk.
The Question Stands: Should Travis Scott be Banned from Performing?
It also has been reported that following the said deadly tragedy, Epic Games has removed Fortnite’s Travis Scott emote from its store. We are curious if Nike will have something to say about this.
To be honest, we really can’t tell since we are not pushers of cancel culture in general, but one thing’s for sure: artists like Travis Scott should be more aware of his fans when it comes to his concerts. It’s not enough for him to issue a public apology after the tragedy. For sure, he has the fame and the money, but how about a little empathy and responsibility Mr. Cactus Jack? Your fans will thank you.
