Roddy Ricch to Donate Astroworld Festival Earnings to Victims' Families
Grammy winning rapper Roddy Ricch on Saturday pledged his performance earnings from Travis Scott's Astroworld Festival to the families of the victims of the tragedy that's being described as a "mass-casualty event." At least eight people were killed and hundreds more injured when there was a surge in the crowd during opening night of the Houston, Texas festival as Scott took the stage. Ricch, known for songs like "Late at Night" and "The Box," the first of the 22 acts to perform at Friday's event to offer to donate his paycheck to the victims' families.
The California native announced his intentions on his Instagram Story on Saturday, just hours after news of the tragedy broke. In his post, the performer requested that "the families of those who we lost yesterday reach out." He went on to announce that he would be "donating my net compensation to the families of this incident." Ricch, who added the "Pray 4 Houston" hashtag, asked that families of those involved in the tragedy contact Shawn Holiday, a member of his management team.
Ricch was one of several performers involved in Friday's line-up at Astroworld. He performed a half-hour set between 5:30 p.m. and 6 p.m. on the Thrills Stage at Houston's NRG Park just hours before Scott began performing on the Chills Stage at around 9 p.m. Shortly after he began performing, people started rushing towards the stage, with the first reports of injuries surfacing at around 9:30 p.m. The incident left eight people dead, including several teenagers, and more than 300 injured.
Scott addressed the incident on social media Saturday night, telling fans that he is "absolutely devastated by what took place." He added that his "prayers go out to the families and all those impacted by what happened at Astroworld Festival." Scott said "Houston PD has my total support as they continue to look into the tragic loss of life" and he is "committed to working together with the Houston community to heal and support the families in need.
The two-day event at NRG Park had an estimated 50,000 people in attendance. Astroworld organizers canceled the second day of the festival, scheduled for Saturday, following the incident. An investigation into the incident is ongoing, with Houston Police Chief Troy Finner saying during a Saturday press conference that they would "leave no stones unturned." On Sunday, the first lawsuit against Scott and Live Nation was filed, alleging negligence for the event and the resulting tragedy. More lawsuits are expected to follow.