HOUSTON — Some of the families of the 10 people who died at the Astroworld music festival are calling out Houston rapper Travis Scott over his recent interview. The interview by Charlemagne the God was released on YouTube 34 days after the Nov. 5 tragedy at NRG Park.
The brother-in-law of 23-year-old Rudy Peña, the medical assistant from Laredo who died after he fell and got trapped under a crowd of concert-goers, said he watched Scott's interview. He responded in the comment section for the social media video: "That’s what he’s supposed to do: Try to clean the mess. Good first try. Do you people believe he is honest? I don’t think so.”
Houston attorney Tony Buzbee is representing the family of 21-year old Axel Acosta who traveled from Washington state alone to attend the music festival. Acosta died after he was crushed when the crowd pushed forward after Scott took the stage, Buzbee said.
"Yes, I’m aware of the interview. I watched the interview. It appeared to me Travis Scott was trying to make himself out to be the victim. Travis Scott is not the victim," said Buzbee while at a non-related press conference in Lubbock Thursday. "Axel Acosta and his family are the victims."
A statement sent to KHOU 11 by Buzbee's law office offered more.
"Everything that Travis Scott has done or said since ten people died and hundreds of others were injured at his concert has been lawyer-driven and calculated to shift blame from him to someone else. He now says he had an ear piece in, and was not told what was going on in the crowd.
That raises the question: “Did he have an ear piece in his eye? Why did he purposely ignore the death and mayhem occurring literally feet from him?”
Every time Travis Scott opens his mouth in an effort to avoid responsibility and accountability, he further exacerbates the pain of those that lost loved ones.
Axel Acosta’s family doesn’t want to hear Travis Scott’s excuses; excuses do not assuage their grief and pain. Because he won’t voluntarily do so, we intend to force Travis Scott to accept responsibility for his conduct, in court, in front of a jury.
James Lassiter, the attorney representing the family of Bharti Shahani, is among those now suing Travis Scott.
Shahani, a 22-year-old Texas A&M University student, died in the Astroworld tragedy after getting separated from her younger sister. It was Shahani's first concert ever.
In a statement to KHOU 11, Lassiter wrote:
"While Mr. Scott continues using social media to present a public image of someone who is grieved by the catastrophic loss of life that his actions caused, he is quietly paying celebrity lawyers to argue his victims deserve nothing more than symbolic help with funeral costs."
"Mr. Scott's actions matter more than his words, and his actions are those of a man more concerned with salvaging his career than taking responsibility for the damage he's done. We look forward to presenting evidence of Mr. Scott's significant role in this entirely preventable tragedy in court."
The grandmother of the festival's youngest victim, 9-year old Ezra Blount, told KHOU 11 News Reporter Melissa Correa that she had not heard nor was aware Travis Scott answered questions during an interview.
