Travis Scott and Drake are being sued for over US$1 million by a concert-goer who was left "severely injured" in a crowd surge at the Astroworld festival in Texas that left eight dead.
The rappers, along with Live Nation Entertainment and Harris Country Sports and Convention Corporation, are being accused of negligence, with 23-year-old survivor Kristian Paredes claiming the hip-hop stars "incited the crowd".
In a lawsuit obtained by the Daily Mail, Paredes alleges that Scott and Drake continued to perform "as the crowd became out of control" and while "crowd mayhem continued".
Paredes said he was at the front of the general admission section of the concert and felt an "immediate push" towards the VIP section in front of him as Scott came on stage around 9pm.
"The crowd became chaotic and a stampede began leaving eight dead and dozens including Kristian Paredes severely injured," the filing states.
"Many begged security guards hired by Live Nation Entertainment for help, but were ignored."
The complainant claims the deaths and injuries were caused by the "negligence, carelessness and recklessness" of the defendants and all parties associated with the management and control of the premises where the incident took place.
Scott said in a statement following the tragedy that he was "devastated" by the events that unfolded and couldn't "imagine anything like this happening". The rapper has twice been convicted previously for encouraging fans to rush the stage and jump security barriers at concerts, according to the Daily Mail.
Attorney Thomas J Henry, who is representing Paredes, said there was "no excuse" for what happened at the NRG stadium over the weekend.
"There is every indication that the performers, organisers, and venue were not only aware of the hectic crowd but also that injuries and potential deaths may have occurred," he said.
"Still, they decided to put profits over their attendees and allowed the deadly show to go on."
Disturbing videos from the gig shared on social media appear to show unconscious festival attendees receiving CPR while the concert continued, and fans climbing on to the stage to plead with crew members to halt the performance, screaming "someone's dead in there".
According to Reuters, Scott did pause the show several times throughout his 75-minute set and called for help from security when spotting fans in distress, as shown in videos shared online.
Scott's girlfriend Kylie Jenner, who was also at the event and hastily deleted videos of the concert from her social media, insisted neither she nor Scott were aware of the scale of the tragedy until after the show.
