Source: Theo Wargo / Getty
Ye aka Kanye West is back in the headlines, this time threatening to pull out of Coachella unless Billie Eilish publicly apologizes to Travis Scott.
According to reports, the singer stopped performing during her concert in Atlanta last Saturday (February 5th) for her Happier Than Ever Tour. She witnessed a fan who had trouble breathing. The fan needed an inhaler, and Eilish obtained one for them. “It’s OK, we got one,” Eilish said. “Give her some time. Don’t crowd.” In-camera footage taken by another fan, she also said, “We’re taking care of our people. I wait for people to be OK until I keep going.” Some observers – West among them – took that as a jab directed towards Scott, still dealing with the aftermath of the tragedy at his Astroworld Festival that ended with 10 dead and hundreds of injuries sustained by concertgoers. Currently, there is one major case against the “Sicko” rapper and Live Nation which has 2,800 victims suing.
West took to Instagram on Thursday (February 10th) to post a collage photo from TMZ which was picked up by another site and demanded that the “Bored” singer must publicly apologize to Scott. “COME ON BILLIE WE LOVE YOU PLEASE APOLOGIZE TO TRAV”, he wrote in the caption of the post. West concluded with this demand. “YES TRAV WILL BE WITH ME AT COACHELLA BUT NOW I NEED BILLIE TO APOLOGIZE BEFORE I PERFORM”. Scott was initially slated to perform at the festival in April but was dropped from the lineup after the tragedy last November.
Eilish, who is also headlining at Coachella, responded in the comments under the post: “Literally never said a thing about Travis. Was just helping a fan,” she wrote.
West’s comments have also drawn high criticism from at least one family member of someone who died at the Astroworld Festival. “To hear Kanye’s words, that’s hurtful to us. What an idiotic thing to say,” said Bernon Blount, the grandfather of 9-year-old victim Ezra Blount. His grandmother agreed, stating: “I think it’s just crazy, and I hate to use that word, but I think it’s ridiculous. She’s making sure that she is caring for the patrons at her concert, and I just think that’s crazy of Kanye to even let that demand come out of his mouth.”
