Travis Scott To Face Jury Trial Over Astroworld Lawsuits

Travis Scott (whose real name is Jacques Bermon Webster II) will be facing a jury trial over the Astroworld Lawsuits, a judge rules after ten people who attended his 2021 festival were killed in a crowd surge. State District Judge Kristen Hawkins denied Scott's request to dismiss himself and his touring and production company, XX Global, from the case per the Associated Press.

Drake, who was a surprise guest at the festival was dismissed by Hawkins as well as seven companies, and individual people who had been sued, according to ABC earlier this month. Companies such as Apple Music, which live-streamed the event, were not dismissed.

Noah Wexler, who is the attorney for the family of Madison Dubiski, a 23-year-old fan who was one of the victims, is arguing that Scott "encouraged people who didn’t have tickets to break in" and did not listen to festival organizers when he was asked to stop his set. Dubiski's family is set to go to trial on May 6.

While Scott will face civil lawsuits from the families of the victims over the Astworld tragedy, the rapper will not face criminal charges.

"It is tragic that ten innocent people were killed while trying to enjoy an evening of music and entertainment, something many of us do routinely and without a second thought to our safety. But a tragedy isn’t always a crime, and not every death is a homicide," District Attorney Kim Ogg said in a statement per NBC News back in June 2023. "This grand jury’s determination has no impact on the many civil lawsuits pending."

Among those who lost their lives was a 9-year-old named Ezra Blount. The other victims were ages 14 to 27; they all died from compression asphyxia, the publication reports. Nearly 2,400 people required medical treatment after the incident.

Scott's attorney, Kent Schaffer, said the court's decision accurately reflects the rapper's position in the incident.

Scott's legal team, led by litigator Daniel Petrocelli, is arguing that the safety of fans at concerts is "not the job of performing artists," per Billboard. 

“Like any other adrenaline-inducing diversion, music festivals must balance exhilaration with safety and security—but that balance is not the job of performing artists, even those involved in promoting and marketing performances,” Petrocelli wrote. “Which only makes sense: Performing artists, even those who engage in certain promotional activities, have no inherent expertise or specialized knowledge in concert safety measures, venue security protocols, or site-design.”

Petrocelli continued: “When, during festival planning, concerns arose about the risk of a stampede occurring in the festival site, the Scott defendants supported festival organizers’ efforts to eliminate that risk by agreeing to remove certain rides and other attractions at the site. Then, when the Scott defendants were told to end the show after Mr. Scott’s guest performer finished performing, they did just that—ending the show as directed.”

The Utopia rapper spoke out about the tragedy a month following the incident.

"It gets so hard because, you know, I always feel connected with my fans," he told Charlamagne Tha God at the time. "I went through something and I feel like fans went through something and people’s parents went through something. And it really hurts."

A Grammy is regarded as one of the most prestigious awards in music. Or at least it used to be. Hip-hop, which has taken the main stage in coming years still does not get the same respect as other music formats. The Grammys have been called out by artists, more specifically Black artists, for not getting it right, or being relevant.

While the conversation surrounding how the Grammys treats Black artists is not new by any means, it was specifically called out by both Jay-Z and Drake this year. On Sunday night, Jay-Z took the stage for his acceptance of the Dr. Dre Global Impact Award. From the stage, he discussed his feelings the Grammys' biases. He brought to light the fact that his wife Beyoncé -- who holds the most Grammys of any artist with 32 -- has never won Album Of The Year.

"I don't want to embarrass this young lady. But she has more Grammys than anyone and has never won Album of the Year," Jay said. "So even by your own metrics, it doesn't work."

Drake was not present at the award show, as he was on his It's All A Blur: Big As The What? Tour . He was up for four awards with 21 Savage for their joint project Her Loss. Although, it did not stop the rapper for sharing hie feelings about how he felt towards the Recording Academy.

"All you incredible artists remember this show isn't the facts it's just the opinion of a group of people who's name are kept a secret (literally you can google in)," he captioned a video of himself giving a speech at a previous Grammy Awards on his Instagram Story Sunday (Feb. 5). "Congrats to anybody winning anything for hip-hop but this show doesn't dictate s--- in our world."

For hip-hop this year, Killer Mike racked up three Grammys. The rapper won Best Rap Song and Best Rap Performance for "Scientists and Engineers." The song featuring André 3000, Future, and Eryn Allen Kane. He also won Best Rap Album for Michael. Lil Durk and J. Cole also took home a Grammy for Best Melodic Rap Performance for "All My Life."

Take a look at seven rappers who have never won a Grammy below: