Travis Scott’s UTOPIA Concert In Rome Reportedly Leaves 60 People Injured

Travis Scott’s UTOPIA show held at the Circus Maximus in Rome has reportedly left approximately 60 fans injured.

The show took place on Monday, August 7, at the ancient chariot-racing stadium, which was once the largest in the Roman Empire, and saw a surprise appearance by controversial rapper Kanye West on stage, marking his first show since his antisemitic rant in October 2022.

“There is no UTOPIA without Kanye West,” Scott told the crowd. “There is no Travis Scott without Kanye West. There is no Rome without Kanye West.”

“Ye West — the illest of all muthafuckin’ time,” Scott added. “Hopefully one day we can do that God damn tour.”

However, on Wednesday (August 9), Euronews published an article that detailed several injuries that occurred during the concert, where they alleged that “things spiralled out of control after a suspected pepper-spray incident, leaving dozens of fans injured and approximately 60 in need of medical treatment.”

They added that a 14-year-old — who had tried to enter the Circus Maximus to watch the show and had attempted to evade security — was also hospitalised after falling from a four-metre height.

Italian police are reportedly investigating the case, which apparently led to an “earthquake”-like effect throughout the city.

The director of the Colosseum archaeological park said following the show, “We will judge rock concerts negatively.”

The news comes following the 2021 Astroworld tragedy in Houston, Texas, that left ten people dead and countless others injured after a crowd surge occurred during the rapper's set.

The 2021 tragedy occurred while Travis was on stage at around 9:00 p.m. on the evening of November 5, 2021, when the crowd had “began to compress toward the front of the stage," said Houston Fire Chief Samuel Peña said during a news conference held on Saturday, November 6.

“At the start of the mass casualty incident, when it was triggered … We transferred 17 patients to the hospital,” Peña added.

In the end, 10 people lost their lives, eight of which died on the night of the concert: Mirza Baig, 27, Rodolfo Peña, 23, Madison Dubiski, 23, Franco Patiño, 21, Jacob Jurinke, 20, John Hilgert, 14, Axel Acosta, 21, from and Brianna Rodriguez, 16. Bharti Shahani, 22, and Ezra Blount, 9, died in the following days in hospital.

In a statement released following the disaster, Scott said he was “distraught by the situation and desperately wishes to share his condolences and provide aid to (the victims) as soon as possible.”

District Attorney Kim Ogg would go on to announce on Thursday, June 30, that "no single individual was criminally responsible" for the Astroworld disaster, despite calls from victims' families and social media users for Scott to be held responsible for the deaths, which included nine-year-old fan Ezra Blount - the youngest victim of the tragedy.

“In this instance, the grand jury of the 228th District Court of Harris County found that no crime did occur, that no single individual was criminally responsible,” the DA said.

“It is tragic that 10 innocent people were killed while trying to enjoy an evening of music and entertainment, something many of us do routinely and without a second thought to our safety. But a tragedy isn’t always a crime, and not every death is a homicide."“This grand jury’s determination has no impact on the many civil lawsuits pending.”

Multiple lawsuits from the victims' families have been filed against Scott and other organisers, including the entertainment company Live Nation, though both have denied any allegations of negligence in relation to the promotion and planning of the festival.

“While waiting patiently for the District Attorney’s decision to not file charges, Travis Scott has been inaccurately and wrongly singled out, despite stopping the show three separate times and being unaware of the events as they were unfolding,” Scott’s spokesperson Ted Anastasiou told CNN Thursday (June 29).

“Now that this chapter is closed, we hope for the government efforts to focus on what is most important - stopping future heartbreaking tragedies like Astroworld from ever occurring again.”

Scott's attorney, Kent Schaffer, also told the publication that Scott was "ecstatic" over the ruling.

“It’s a huge weight that has been removed from his shoulders. He’s looking forward to getting back home after being cleared by the grand jury,” he said.