An attorney representing Travis Scott claims the troubled rapper wasn’t aware that people were dying as he performed at his Astroworld Festival in Houston.
Nine people died and hundreds were injured during a stampede at the music festival on Nov. 5. But Scott performed for another 40 minutes.
Attorney Edwin F. McPherson claims the rapper was unaware of the chaos and deaths until the next morning.
In an interview on ABC’s Good Morning America on Friday, McPherson called the chaos a “systemic breakdown” and said people should wait for the investigation before “we start pointing fingers at anyone.”.
McPherson claims the rapper nor his crew were ever informed that officials declared the concert a mass casualty event.
“He’s up there trying to perform. He does not have any ability to know what’s going on down below,” McPherson said. “Travis didn’t really understand the full effect of everything until the next morning. Truly, he did not know what was going on.”
When asked about Scott’s history of inciting the crowd to violence, McPherson said the rapper did what any other performer has done.
“Travis as an artist has really grown up a lot. I have spoken personally to him about this and he really didn’t understand the magnitude of his power up on the stage as a young performer. He’s really matured over the years.”
So far, 150 lawsuits have been filed against Scott, Live Nation Entertainment, and NRG Park where the concert was held.
The festival was insured for $26 million, but wrongful death claims are expected to surpass $100 million.
Scott has earned around $65 million overall from the festival, according to reports.
Watch the interview below.
