Culture
10 Aug 23

60 people reportedly injured during Travis Scott concert in Rome

Travis Scott at Longitude 2023. Copyright Miguel Ruiz.

The mammoth gig, held at Italy's Circus Maximus, was attended by over 60,000 people.

Rapper Travis Scott's Rome "Utopia" show earlier this week reportedly caused at least 60 injuries.

The show was attended by over 60,000 people and included a rare Kanye West feature. The concert was originally supposed to be held at the Pyramids of Giza, but that date was cancelled. Instead, he performed at Italy's Circus Maximus, a historical site.

Travis Scott bringing out Ye during his concert in Rome caused vibrations so intense that locals feared it was an earthquake.

“Italy’s fire service confirmed to CNN that it received ‘hundreds of calls’ from concerned residents who feared there had been an earthquake in the… pic.twitter.com/d6WaqCba0B

— Kurrco (@Kurrco) August 10, 2023

Scott is far from the first artist to perform at the site, the site becoming a favorite of acts like Guns N' Roses and Bruce Springsteen. Now concerns are arising over both safety and the wellbeing of the historical site, as the site was not meant to hold concerts of that size.

Apparently, some concertgoers brought pepper spray into the concert and used it on the crowd, causing over 60 people to need medical attention. A 14-year-old was also left injured after falling off of a 13-foot false wall they had scaled in order to try and sneak into the concert.

It even affected those outside of the concert grounds: according to reports from local fire services, a large influx of emergency calls were made by people who mistook the noise and vibrations from the concert to be an earthquake. According to a seismologist, the vibrations created the equivalent of a 1.3 earthquake.

“The Circus Maximus is a monument. It is not a stadium, not a concert hall,” reminded Alfonsina Russo, director of the head of the Colosseum Archeological Park. “These mega rock concerts put it at risk, including the Palatine Hill nearby. Rock concerts should be held in stadiums so as not to endanger public safety.”

This news is reminiscent of 2021's Astroworld tragedy, in which 10 concertgoers were crushed to death during one of Scott's performances. Scott was recently cleared of any criminal charges.