Family of Astroworld victim, 16, say she would ‘still be alive if Travis Scott’s team had shut down concert earlier’
THE family of a 16-year-old killed at Travis Scott's Astroworld concert say she would still be alive if the rapper's team had shut down the concert earlier - after fans crashed the gig and caused chaos.
Dancer Brianna Rodriguez was one of eight young people who died at Scott's Astroworld Festival in , Texas late Friday evening.
Rodriguez was found unresponsive after losing her friends in the crowd stampede during 's performance and is died on the way to hospital, her family said.
Her aunt Iris Rodriguez, 38, has revealed the heartbreaking final moments of her niece's life and also slammed Scott's team for allowing the star to continue perform as people were being stretchered out.
Speaking exclusively to The Sun, Iris said she was watching the news at around 5pm, where she saw all the people trying to get in the venue "trampling each other."
"I really believe in my heart this should have been shut down in the afternoon when they saw all these people going crazy," she said.
"Had they done that, maybe she would have still been here."
Iris said she doesn't want to directly blame Scott for her niece's death - after he broke his silence saying he's devastated.
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She said: "He's a father, you know. I would never want anything like this to happen to his babies. I don't know if it's about the money, or he didn't know what was going on.
"I just want to say to Travis that Brianna loved him and that I'm sad his team weren't able to keep these kids safe. And because of that, we no longer have our shining star."
Read our Travis Scott Astroworld Festival live blog for the very latest news and updates...
Sadly, he added: "I am yet to hear from his team. They haven't reached out to our family.
"It's tragic for all of the victims. These young people went there to have a good time. They did not expect to wake up that morning and never go home again.
"My heart goes out to everybody. We understand, we pray for them. All we have now is memories keeping her alive in our hearts.
"This is how our Lord wanted her to go; we can't question him. We just hope she went peacefully and she’s forever going to be missed."
"She'd been to a previous Travis Scott concert, but she wasn't able to go to the last Astroworld. She was so excited.
"For her quinceañera, I actually reached out to him saying, ‘Hey, my niece is turning 15. If you can just maybe do like a ten second video saying happy birthday, Brianna.’ So we could play it for her as a surprise.
'A WELL LOVED GIRL'
"Of course we never got a reply back, but that's how much of a fan she was.
"So for her to go to this concert and lose her life, it's just tragic.
"She was the first in our family to have a quinceañera. We spoiled her, whatever she wanted she got.
"We were worried not many people were going to turn up because of the pandemic. But the hall was for 500 people, the tables were filled. She was a well loved girl.";
Talking about the concert, she said: "Brianna went with a small group of friends, girls and boys, maybe six or seven of them. They’re all good kids, so my sister-in-law was okay with them going, they’re teenagers wanting to have fun.
"We don't know exactly what happened, what caused her death. We are waiting for the autopsy results. My sister-in-law has received a phone call that she was being taken to the hospital because she was not breathing.
"We were told that once she was in the ambulance, she didn't have any pulse. But they tried to bring her back and in the hospital. They tried to do everything they could."
On Saturday, the rapper broke his silence in an Instagram video, saying he "could never image the severity of the situation."
"My fans really mean the world to me and I always wanna leave them with a positive experience and anytime I can make out anything that’s going on, I stop the show and help them get the help they need, you know?" he said.
The superstar, whose real name is Jacques Bermon Webster II, added that he is working with authorities and is asking fans from the event to do the same.
"If you have any information, please just contact your local authorities," he said. "Everyone continue to just keep your prayers."
Meanwhile, his girlfriend Kylie Jenner said she's heartbroken, telling fans: "Travis and I are broken and devastated. My thoughts and prayers are with all who lost their lives, were injured or affected in anyway by yesterday's events.
"And also for Travis who I know cares deeply for his fans and the Houston community.
"I want to make it clear we weren't aware of any fatalities until the news came out after the show and in no world would have continued filming or performing.
"I am sending my deepest condolences to all the families during this difficult time and will be praying for the healing of everyone who has been impacted."
LAWSUITS PILING UP
Scott is reportedly facing numerous lawsuits following the disaster at Astroworld.
According to Billboard, a festival attendee, Manuel Souza, filed a petition in Harris County District Court against the rapper, organizer ScoreMore and concert company Live Nation.
The lawsuit alleges that Scott and his producing partners placed emphasis on "a motivation for profit at the expense of concertgoers' health and safety."
The plaintiff's attorney, Steve Kherkher, wrote: "Defendants failed to properly plan and conduct the concert in a safe manner.
"Instead, they consciously ignored the extreme risks of harm to concertgoers, and, in some cases actively encouraged and fomented dangerous behaviors."
Alongside Drake, Scott has also been accused of "inciting mayhem" during the Friday night incident.
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