NEWS
Toro Y Moi
Jack BoolToro y Moi pledged to donate all profits from his performance at Travis Scott's 2021 Astroworld Festival on Friday to the families of the eight victims who died.
The performer, also known as Chaz Bear, took to Instagram on Wednesday (Nov. 10) following his performance last weekend at Houston's Astroworld. Friday's event left eight festivalgoers -- ranging in ages from 14 to 27 -- dead and 300 more injured as a result of the crowd reportedly surging toward the stage during Scott's headlining set. Toro y Moi frequently collaborated with Scott on the rapper's early material, including "Chaz Interlude" from the 2013 mixtape Owl Pharaoh and "Flying High" from his 2015 debut studio album Rodeo. The 35-year-old artist's initial social media statement following the deadly festival was, "Team Toro is safe and sound. Sending love to Houston. Thanks for having us, we hope to be back soon! Be safe out there everyone."
In his latest Instagram post, he said he paired the solemn message with a picture of himself smiling "purely for algorithmic purposes only."
"I’d like to send my condolences to the families of those who were killed at AstroWorld last week. The loss of life at a concert is unbelievably sad and discouraging as an entertainer. It’s taken me a few days to process and understand what all has happened," Bear wrote. "To show support, my business/management teams, my band and crew and I are all donating our entire fees and any profit to the families of the victims from the event. Profiting from this event feels completely off and I’d like to encourage other performers to consider helping in someway as well."
He's the second artist who has publicly announced they were donating their performance earnings to the victims' families, after Roddy Ricch took the lead on Sunday, writing, "I'll be donating my net compensation to the families of this incident."
Other Astroworld performers who have offered up their condolences after the "mass casualty" event include Drake, who addressed the families by writing on Instagram, "I will continue to pray for all of them and will be of service in any way I can," as well as SZA, who tweeted, "I'm actually in shock n don't even know what to say .. just praying for everyone in Houston especially the families of those that lost their lives."
Bear added toward the end of this Wednesday post: "We have always promoted a positive, safe space for people to express and have fun. I promise to prioritize our fan’s safety throughout the show. All I ask all of my fans, venue staff and security is that if you ever see someone in distress or in need of any help at a show, please— help them out."
On Monday, Scott announced he would cover the funeral costs for all eight victims as well as partner with BetterHelp to provide free virtual one-on-one therapy for anyone needing it in the wake of the travesty.
Read Toro y Moi's message below.
London four piece Keo are on course to land their first UK Number 1 album with Put A Smile On For Me. After building a loyal audience over the past two years, the London band now lead this week’s Official Albums Chart update. Their debut record explores love, guilt, and self destruction.
Nothing But Thieves are close behind at Number 2 with their fifth album, Stray Dogs. The Southend band are hoping for a second straight Number 1 after Dead Club City reached the top in 2023. Taylor Swift is at Number 3 with The Life Of A Showgirl, helped by the expanded The Encore edition. Olivia Rodrigo’s You Seem Pretty Sad For A Girl So In sits at Number 4, while Soft Cell’s Danceteria opens at Number 5. It is the synth pop duo’s final album together following Dave Ball’s death last year.
Europe could reach Number 9 with Come This Madness, giving the Swedish rock band its first UK Top 10 album in four decades. A 30th anniversary reissue of Alice In Chains’ MTV Unplugged is at Number 13 in the midweek update, with Orbital’s Glastonbury 1994 set at Number 14. Julia Jacklin is heading for her first Top 40 album as The Gem reaches Number 18, while Suede’s Coming Up returns at Number 23 after its 30th anniversary physical release.
Also on track for Top 40 places are Nessa Barrett’s Tough Love at Number 29, the companion soundtrack to LINKIN PARK: UNSHATTER at Number 30, and Dublin band Gurriers’ Nobody’s Coming To Save You at Number 31. Blondshell, Kneecap, Tina Turner, and Leon Bridges also appear in the lower half of the midweek chart.
The official positions will be announced when the final Albums Chart is published on Friday.
