Travis Scott’s attempt to make amends to the youngest Astroworld victim’s family didn’t go exactly as planned when they rejected his offer to cover funeral costs.
According to the letter obtained by Rolling Stone, the family’s attorney Bob Hilliard responded, writing, “Your client’s offer is declined. I have no doubt Mr. Scott feels remorse. His journey ahead will be painful. He must face and hopefully see that he bears some of the responsibility for this tragedy.”
Ezra Blount, who died at age 9 after allegedly getting trampled at the concert in Houston, Texas, was laid to rest in a private ceremony last week. His death comes after he was initially placed on life support due to the injuries he sustained on November 5.
Hilliard’s response comes after the rapper, 30, sent a letter to the Blount family through his attorney Daniel Petrocelli, which read, “Travis is committed to doing his part to help the families who have suffered and begin the long process of healing in the Houston community. Toward that end, Travis would like to pay for the funeral expenses for Mr. Blount’s son.”
The Blount family’s loss raised the casualty count to 10 deaths, as attendees have decided to take legal action for the crowd surge that resulted in a mass accident.
“This is a tragic night,” Houston Fire Chief Samuel Peña said during a news conference on November 6, noting that the crowd had “began to compress toward the front of the stage,” which created a problem with nearly 50,000 fans in attendance.
At the time, the “Sicko Mode” rapper took to social media to address the situation.
“I’m absolutely devastated by what took place last night. My prayers go out to the families and all those impacted by what happened at Astroworld Festival,” he tweeted one day after the concert. “Houston PD has my total support as they continue to look into the tragic loss of life.”
That same day, the record producer elaborated via his Instagram Stories that he didn’t know the “severity of the situation” until later on.
“I just want to send out prayers to all the ones that was lost last night,” he said in a selfie video. “We’re actually working right now how to identify the families so we can help the system through this tough time … We’ve been working closely with everyone to try to get to the bottom of this.”
Scott’s girlfriend, Kylie Jenner, also expressed her condolences after she attended the event with their 3-year-old daughter, Stormi.
“Travis and I are broken and devastated,” Jenner, 24, wrote via her Instagram Story on November 7. “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.”
The beauty mogul added, “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.”