The more we know about Travis Scott's Astroworld concert on November 5th,
the worse it gets. Houston Fire Chief Samuel Peña called the incident a "mass casualty incident" at
a press conference after 300 people were injured and at least eight people died.
Scott addressed the incident on November 6th, and his girlfriend, Kylie Jenner,
spoke out for the couple the next day. The New York Post reported that Scott has a
history of inciting music festival crowds to violent levels. The rapper was arrested in
2017 after an Arkansas concert resulted in multiple injuries, the outlet noted.
Per The Washington Post, videos from the Houston concert showed fans trying to get
help and yelling to stop the show. About 30 minutes after Scott took the stage,
a member of the audience climbed up to a raised platform to get the attention of
camera operators. The Post reported that the man pointed to the crowd, yelling,
"People are f---ing dying. I want to save somebody's life.
That's somebody's kid ... I want to save them."
Houston police have opened a criminal investigation into the concert,
The Washington Post reported.
Here's what Scott and Jenner have said about the tragedy.
On November 7th, Kylie Jenner wrote in an Instagram Story that she and Travis Scott
are "broken and devastated" about the Astroworld Festival tragedy. She wrote,
"My thoughts and prayers are with all who lost their lives,
were injured or affected in any way by yesterday's events."
The reality star also defended Scott,
who has been accused of ignoring fans who begged him to stop the concert. She added,
"I want to make it clear we weren't aware of any fatalities until the news came out
after the show and in no world would have continued filming or performing."
Scott also broke his silence the morning after the concert,
tweeting that he was "devastated." The rapper continued to express condolences
for the Astroworld victims later on November 6th. Scott wrote in an Instagram Story,
"My fans really mean the world to me, and I always just want to leave them with a
positive experience, and anytime I can make out anything that's going on — stop the show and help
them get the help they need... I just could never imagine the severity of the situation."
But some fans have pushed back on claims that the rapper didn't understand that fans were
distressed. One Twitter user shared a video from the concert, tweeting,
"A guy yelled and told you to stop the show and you said 'who
told me to stop.' You knew wtf was happening."
As news of the Astroworld tragedies continues to make waves, the microscope is surely beaming
down on both Travis Scott and Kylie Jenner at the moment. The festival, aptly named after
the rapper's third studio album, saw performances from top names such as Roddy Ricch, SZA, and Drake
— the latter of whom, alongside Scott, is now being named in a lawsuit regarding the incident.
But while the artists were performing onstage, this begs the question — what was Jenner up to?
On November 7th, TMZ published a report featuring images of Jenner looking pensive and alert to the
ongoings of the packed crowd. Jenner, who was seen masked up during the event, was spotted alongside
Scott's security detail in a tent away from the main stage. The outlet also noted Jenner's body
language — a lack of concert-going excitement — and what appeared to be a nervous look on her
face. Another video captured her with daughter Stormi, who seemed to be enjoying the show.
Despite the initial report, the outlet published an update shortly afterward
to clarify Jenner's reaction. A source who reportedly spoke directly to Jenner told the
outlet that the mother-of-one had no idea what was happening at the moment and to assume so would be
"unfair and inaccurate." Jenner did note in a follow-up statement after the tragedy, however,
that she and Scott were "unaware of any fatalities" until after the show was over.
It's not uncommon for fans to livestream or share concert footage via social media in this day and
age, and Kylie Jenner is no exception to the rule. During Houston's Astroworld Festival,
which lasted from November 5th to November 6th, Jenner took to Instagram to share videos of Travis
Scott performing at his own music festival. In the clips, viewers bear witness to a large horde of
people, as Jenner remains quiet in the background while filming. Concertgoers are seen having a good
time, jumping around, and singing along to Scott's tunes. However, there was one video
that Jenner posted that had fans scratching their heads, which she ultimately deleted.
In the video, Jenner scans the audience during an ongoing performance but fails to acknowledge
an ambulance smack dab in the middle of the crowd. Not-so-eagle-eyed viewers could even
spot the ambulance's flashing lights, though what was actually happening on the ground was unclear.
Given Jenner's far distance and lack of clarity on the situation,
it most certainly would have posed a challenge for her to act, to say the least.