Source: Rick Kern / Getty
One day after performing at Astroworld on Friday (November 5), Roddy Ricch announced in his Instagram stories to donate proceeds he made from his performance to the families of the eight individuals who died at the festival.
“Please have the families of those who we lost yesterday reach out,” Roddy wrote. “I’ll be donating my net compensation to the families of this incident #Pray4Houston.”
The move from the LA native arrives after hip-hop and the Houston community deals with the aftermath of an incident at Astroworld which left eight people dead and hundreds hospitalized with injuries.
In a press conference Saturday, Houston Fire Chief Sam Peña said the crowd started to rush toward the stage around 9:15 p.m. CT, about 15 to 20 minutes into Travis Scott‘s headlining set. People began passing out, inciting more panic, at which point the Houston Police Department declared a mass casualty incident.
“The crowd for whatever reason began to push and surge towards the front of the stage, which caused the people in the front to be compressed – they were unable to escape that situation,” Peña said.
At a follow-up press conference later in the afternoon, Houston mayor Sylvester Turner revealed the ages of the eight people who lost their lives: a 14-year-old, a 16-year-old, two 21-year-olds, two 23-year-olds, one 27-year-old, and an unidentified male believed to be in his 20s. The loss of life at Astroworld Fest on Friday ranked among the deadliest at a concert in U.S. history.
According to experts, lawsuits are expected for producers, promoters, performers and subcontractors — including security firms after the tragedy.
“Litigation will be filed by the end of the Monday or sooner because lawyers representing the victims need to move quickly to secure the evidence at the scene and to make sure evidence is not destroyed or tampered with,” Houston attorney Randy Sorrels, who is past president of the State Bar of Texas told the Houston Chronicle.
“The insurance companies for the defendants are either already on the scene or are on their way,” Sorrels said. “There will be multiple investigations. OSHA (Occupational Health and Safety Administration) could investigate if any workers at the festival injured.”
On Saturday, Scott issued two statements, one a written one and another of a black and white video where he expressed sorrow for fans losing their lives.
“I just wanna send prayers to the ones that was lost last night …” he told fans in a video posted to Instagram. “You know my fans really mean the world to me, and I always really wanna leave them with a positive experience.”
He added, “If you have any information, please just contact your local authorities, he continued. “I’m honestly just devastated. I could never imagine anything like this just happening. I’ma do everything I can to keep you guys updated.”
Roddy Ricch Donates Earnings From Astroworld Festival To Families Of Victims was originally published on theboxhouston.com
