On Nov. 5, chaos ensued at Travis Scott’s Astroworld festival in Houston. A crowd rushed toward the stage, each person trampling on top of each other, leaving eight dead and nearly 300 injured. Now, the concert performers and organizers are facing lawsuits in response to the incident.
According to Stereogum, at least two people at the festival are suing Scott, Live Nation and Drake, as he was the surprise artist during Scott’s set. One of these attendees is Michael Souza, whose lawyer says “Defendants failed to properly plan and conduct the concert in a safe manner. Instead, they consciously ignored the extreme risks of harm to concertgoers, and, in some cases actively encouraged and fomented dangerous behaviors.”
Another attendee taking legal action is Kristian Paredes, who claims that the artists “incited the crowd” that led to his injuries. Souza and Paredes are both looking to claim at least $1 million from the lawsuit. Personal injury lawyer Thomas J. Henry is representing Paredes, as well as offering free consultations to other festival attendees.
In a statement, Henry claimed that the performers, organizers and venue were allegedly aware of both the crowd and the series of serious injuries and numerous deaths occurring throughout the night. The lawyer said that they allegedly “decided to put profits over their attendees and allowed the deadly show to go on.”
Astroworld has always been a jam-packed event: in 2019, tickets for the festival sold out weeks before Scott announced the lineup. Prior to this year’s festival, the rapper headlined the Rolling Loud Music Festival on Halloween weekend.
Photo Credit: Mauricio Alvarado
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