Travis Scott tells Charlamagne Tha God in interview he wasn't aware of Astroworld casualties until after the show
"I have a responsibility to figure out the solution," the hip-hop artist said.
Travis Scott spoke out about the Astroworld tragedy in an extensive interview with radio host Charlamagne Tha God in which the rapper said he was unaware of the injuries and fatalities among fans until after his headlining performance was over.
In the 50-minute interview, posted Thursday on the Breakfast Club co-host's YouTube channel, Scott said that he's still trying to wrap his head around what happened and has been on an "emotional rollercoaster" over the past month.
"At the end of day, like, these fans are your family, so you just feel like you lost -- lost something," he said.
On Nov. 5, about 50,000 gathered for the first night of that weekend's sold-out Astroworld music festival at NRG Stadium in Scott's hometown of Houston. At one point in the chaos, as the crowd surged forward, some concertgoers panicked and pushed in all directions and trampled others, killing 10 and injuring hundreds.
Authorities are still investigating what caused the surge, but the roles of the concert production and event management companies -- Live Nation Entertainment, ScoreMore Holdings and the Harris County Sports & Convention Corporation -- as well as those of the performers, Scott and Drake, have come under scrutiny, and have been named in a slew of lawsuits.
Scott has denied legal liability, and he and event organizers are cooperating with investigators.
Attorneys for Scott didn't immediately respond on Thursday when contacted by ABC News.
Scott was criticized by some Astroworld attendees for not stopping his performance that Friday after spotting an ambulance among concertgoers. Videos from the event show some fans crying out for help and pleading with the rapper to stop the show.
Pressed by Charlamagne about when he found out that "things got as bad as they did," Scott said that it wasn't until after the show was over, adding that it wasn't "until like the press conference, until I figured out exactly what happened."
Scott, who briefly paused the show after spotting an ambulance in the crowd, said he didn't hear fans pleading for help and that he was wearing an earpiece, which limited what he could hear amid the chaos.
"Everything kind of just sounds the same. At the end of the day, you just hear music," he said.
The Grammy-nominated artist is known for his rowdy shows, at which safety previously was a concern, as documented in the 2019 Netflix special, "Travis Scott: Look Mom I Can Fly."
Charlamagne, the host of Comedy Central's "Tha God's Honest Truth," pressed Scott about the energy of his shows and whether he believes "raging" contributed to the tragedy.
"In the past, you've encouraged, I guess the kind of energy that could have led to something like this happening. Do you think that contributed to the energy of this?" Charlamagne asked.
"People didn't show up there to just be harmful," Scott responded, adding that "raging" is "not about harm" and is "just the experience of having fun."
He added that to him, the show felt like any other show, and artists "trust the professionals" to make sure that shows happen safely.
Scott was arrested in 2017 after a concert in Arkansas at which he encouraged fans to bypass security and rush the stage, leading to several injuries but no deaths. He was charged with several misdemeanors and pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct, and paid a fine.
But prior to Astroworld, none of his shows had led to fatalities.
Asked if he feels responsible for the tragedy, Scott said, "I have a responsibility to figure out what happened here. I have a responsibility to figure out the solution."