Travis Scott’s team is clearly horrified after an attorney representing the family of Astroworld victim Ezra Blount condemned the rapper for stopping a July 4 concert in Coney Island, New York over safety concerns. In a statement sent to HipHopDX, a rep for Scott slammed Alex Hilliard for suggesting Scott’s safety check was performative.
“This is the despicable, cynical height of hypocrisy,” the rep said. “It’s beyond disappointing to see that — in a desperate bid to influence potential jurors – the plaintiffs’ legal team is criticizing Travis for pausing Monday’s Coney Island show to ensure that fans can have fun safely.
“This is exactly the wrong message to send to fans — and to artists. And it completely ignores the fact that Travis also stopped his performance at Astroworld three different times.”
But Alex Hilliard evidently sees things differently. He said it did nothing to prove Scott is suddenly “compassionate.” Instead, Hilliard seemed to suggest he knew how to command an audience all along. As Hilliard told TMZ, “He knows exactly how to keep his fans safe during a concert, but the problem with that is he didn’t just learn about the fact that he has control over the entire crowd.”
He continued, “There are 10 people that would still be alive today, including young Ezra Blount, if Travis realized his responsibility as an artist goes further than just trying to rile up his crowds, and it reemphasizes the rule of ‘if you see something say something.’”
Hilliard and the Blount family expressed similar sentiments last month when Scott received his $5.5 million Bugatti, saying that money could’ve been used to ensure the safety of the Astroworld crowd. Little did they know, the car had been purchased prior to the deadly incident.
“[This] is a new low,” a rep said. “The car referenced was purchased way back in 2020 (well before the tragic events at Astroworld), and covered widely by the media — including TMZ — at that time.
“Misrepresenting a two-year-old car purchase to make an unprovoked and unjustified attack on Travis Scott is nothing more than another desperate publicity stunt to try to falsely blame Travis and intentionally manipulate public opinion, which won’t work.”