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Travis Scott was charged twice in the past for encouraging his fans to taunt security and safety guidelines at his shows.
In the wake of Friday’s Astroworld Festival performance that saw eight people die and several others suffer injuries, eyes are turning to the performer's past conduct. People were hurt when the packed crowd surged forward Friday. Now, many have been taking to social media to discuss and share videos from other live performances from the rapper in which he encouraged rule-breaking and even violence at his shows.
The tragedy has also reminded people that the performer has been in serious legal trouble for his conduct at past shows, specifically, incidents in 2015 and 2017 in which he pleaded guilty to charges stemming from directives he gave his crowds at two separate shows.
In 2015, Scott, whose real name is Jacques Bermon Webster, was sentenced to one year of court supervision after pleading guilty to reckless conduct charges after telling a crowd at Chicago’s Lollapalooza music festival.
TRAVIS SCOTT SAYS 'BE SAFE RAGE HARD' AFTER FANS INJURED AT ASTROWORLD FESTIVAL
A general view of the atmosphere during Travis Scott's second annual Astroworld Festival at NRG Park on November 9, 2019 in Houston, Texas. (Gary Miller/Getty Images)
At the time, Chicago officials said Scott encouraged fans to vault security barricades. However, no one was injured.
Earlier that same year, The Source reports that Scott encouraged his followers to jump the barricade separating the crowd from the photographer pit almost as soon as he took the stage at the Hot 97’s Summer Jam Festival. Videos from the incident show Scott telling the crowd that there were not enough security to stop them all from hopping the fence, eventually leading to a brief tussle with Security that ended in them being overwhelmed and the crowd taking up the space near the stage.
At the time, Scott made headlines for kicking a cameraman working with Hot 97 off his stage. When asked about the moment during a radio appearance on Power 106 Los Angeles, Scott was perplexed that the cameraman moment went viral rather than the mass of people breaking the barricade. When asked by the hosts if he realized the cameraman was just doing his job, Scott noted, "that's what a press pit is for." He seemingly did not acknowledge that the pit was reportedly flooded with audience members who hopped the barricade.
In 2017, he was charged again. Scott was arrested after he encouraged fans to bypass security and rush the stage, leaving a security guard, a police officer and several others injured during a concert in Arkansas.
ASTROWORLD DEATHS: TRAVIS SCOTT 'ABSOLUTELY DEVASTATED'
Rapper Travis Scott was performing on stage when what authorities are calling a ‘mass casualty incident’ occurred. (Erika Goldring/WireImage)
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However, even when Scott isn’t directly encouraging fans to break the rules, his concerts can still be dangerous to attendees. At the 2019 Astroworld Festival, three people were injured and taken to the hospital with leg injuries after getting trampled outside the show. Rolling Stone reported at the time that, when the gates opened, there was a brief stampede of people trying to get into the sold-out venue.
Late Friday evening, at least eight people died and numerous others were injured in what officials described as a surge of the crowd at Astroworld while Scott was performing.
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The crowd watches as Travis Scott performs at Astroworld Festival at NRG park on Friday, Nov. 5, 2021 in Houston. Several people died and numerous others were injured in what officials described as a surge of the crowd at the music festival while Scott was performing. Officials declared a "mass casualty incident" just after 9 p.m. Friday during the festival where an estimated 50,000 people were in attendance, Houston Fire Chief Samuel Peña told reporters at a news conference. (Jamaal Ellis/Houston Chronicle via AP)
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Officials declared a "mass casualty incident" just after 9 p.m. Friday during the festival where an estimated 50,000 people were in attendance, Houston Fire Chief Samuel Peña told reporters at a news conference.
Fox News’ Nate Day and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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