Houston rapper Travis Scott messed up, badly.

Although he is trying to make amends for that mistake by canceling future concert performances, donating money to the families of victims of the mass casualty event at his Astroworld festival and paying for the funerals of those who tragically lost their lives on Nov. 5, nothing that happens from this moment forward will ever absolve him from responsibility.

Additionally, that responsibility falls into the laps of law enforcement, concert promoters and others who played a role in the fateful 2021 Astroworld festival because Scott alone is not at fault for the eight people who tragically lost their lives last Friday.

But Scott did make a horrific mistake by not totally canceling his performance when things got out of hand at Astroworld.

In my humble opinion, it seems that many celebrities can get so caught up in their fame and success, that they forget to make intelligent and compassionate decisions at times.

Therefore, this article is not meant to demean Scott because he is a human being that made a mistake.

Who hasn’t made mistakes in their life?

But this article is meant as a wakeup call for celebrities and those who worship celebrities.

Putting people on a pedestal often leads to poor decision making by the person on the pedestal and the people looking up to them.

And on some rare occasions, those poor decisions can lead to the loss of life.

Several weeks ago, I appeared on “Isiah Factor Uncensored” on Fox Soul and Fox 26 Houston (KRIV) to discuss Nicki Minaj and her controversial comments on the COVID-19 vaccine.

The iconic entertainer erroneously told her hundreds of millions of social media followers that they should not get the COVID-19 vaccine because it caused her cousin’s friend to become impotent, which led to his fiancé leaving him before they jumped the broom.

On the talk show, I said that celebrities often have millions of people that follow them.

Therefore, they should always be cognizant of what they do or say, because it might lead to tragic situations for their fans.

Other panelists on that episode of “Isiah Factor Uncensored,” disagreed and said that Nicki Minaj is only responsible for herself and her family.

I always thought that that particular belief was selfish because if a celebrity truly loves their fans, then they should want what’s best for those fans.

If a fan puts money in a celebrity’s pockets, then the least they can do is care about that person and whether they live or die.

But because this country is so celebrity driven, sometimes people make celebrities think that they are above reproach and that sometimes leads to those poor decisions and ill-advised statements.

Furthermore, it often seems that celebrities only care about their fans when they put money in their pockets or sing their praises.

When that is not happening, many celebrities act like their fans are nobodies and that can lead to tragic results.

In Scott’s case, he often talks about how much he loves his fans and his desire to provide inspiration for them.

Many of his fans have stated the Scott’s music made them feel like they belonged.

Some have even said that his music made them want to continue living life when the weight of the world had them down for the count.

Many of his fans paid hundreds of dollars for tickets to the Astroworld festival and other concerts, traveling thousands of miles to see their musical idol.

While idol worship is a problem, that is what happens when some fans give too much credit to another human being because of their talent, influence or power.

One fan that lost his life, traveled by himself from Washington state just to be in the presence of Scott and to see his high-octane performance.

With that type of following, it is understandable why Scott often shows so much love to his fans.

But Scott is the same person encouraging injuries in the mosh pits of his concerts.

He is the same person that encourages fans to jump from second story balconies, seemingly oblivious to the danger that he is putting his fans in.

Allegedly, one fan became paralyzed after the fan said someone pushed them from the balcony because they did not want to jump.

More importantly, Scott is the same rapper who stopped a concert in the middle of the performance because a fan tried to steal his shoe off his foot.

Scott then cursed the fan and encouraged his other fans to F him up.

So Scott must understand if people look at him skeptically when he says how much he loves his fan from here on out.

The hip-hop superstar can stop a concert when someone tries to snatch his shoe.

But he continues a concert, although he momentarily stopped the concert on more than one occasion, when people are dropping like flies at another concert.

That seems like arrogance, negligence and flat out not caring about the fans he says he cares so much.

As a result, Scott must understand that his pockets will become lighter because of the numerous lawsuits.

Furthermore, his fan base might become a little smaller because his wanton disregard for their safety.

Therefore, artists must truly realize the fame is fleeting.

As a result, the money and limelight could disappear immediately.

But most importantly, celebrities must realize that their words hold weight because they have an enormous number of fans who hold on to their every word.

Scott is known to use his platform to encourage his fans to go wild at shows.

It should have become apparent to him years ago that the wildness and injuries he encouraged at his shows could one day graduate to deaths.

Todd A. Smith
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