Travis Scott didn't have the authority to stop Astroworld concert, spokesperson says
Despite criticism from officials in Houston, Travis Scott's spokesperson and former Baltimore mayor, Stephanie Rawlings-Blake, told "CBS Mornings" on Friday that the idea that Scott could have halted the Astroworld music festival is "ludicrous."
"They have a 59-page operations plan, and it clearly says the only two people that are, have the authority to stop the concert, were the executive producer and the concert producer. He was not responsible for this, but he wants to be responsible for the solution," said Rawlings-Blake.
Nine people died at the concert in Houston last Friday. A "mass casualty event" was declared shortly after Scott began his performance.
City officials have previously said that Scott and Astroworld organizers should have stopped the event once they realized members of the crowd were in danger.
"The artist, if he notices something that's going on, he can certainly pause that performance, turn on the lights and say, 'Hey, we're not going to continue until this thing is resolved,' Houston's fire chief Samuel Peña told NBC's "Today" show on Tuesday.
Rawlings-Blake said Scott wasn't aware that the concert turned into a tragedy. Scott attended an after-party at Dave and Busters where Rawlings-Blake said he and his team were trying to "regroup."
"They were trying to figure out what was going on. It was hours and hours after the concert when they actually found out the tragedy, how the tragedy unfolded," she said. "And he has not stopped grieving for these families. He knows that he is who he is because of his fans. His love for his fans is so deep."
Rawlings-Blake said it was Scott's own team who notified him. "There was so much chaos, there was so much breakdown in communication... Nine people have lost their lives, nine families are grieving."