NEWS
Nike has postponed the release of their Air Max 1 x Cactus Jack sneaker collaboration with Travis Scott. The news comes on the heels of the Astroworld tragedy claiming its 10th victim. Ezra Blount, a 9-year-old boy who was trampled at the concert, died from his injuries on Sunday. Hundreds of people were injured at the Houston fest on Nov. 5 following a massive crowd surge during Scott’s headlining set.
“Out of respect for everyone impacted by the tragic events at the Astroworld Festival, we are postponing the launch of the Air Max 1 x Cactus Jack,” the brand posted in an update on its SNKRS app on Monday. It’s unclear if and when the company might release it. The shoe was originally slated to arrive on Dec. 16.
Scott has become a multi-million dollar brand, with deals that span fashion to food — such as his upcoming spring/summer menswear collection partnership with design house Dior and a special meal offering at McDonald’s last year. There is also Scott’s collaboration with Fortnite, which pulled the “Out West” emote that featured a snippet of his song of the same name from the game’s item shop last week, as New York Post notes.
A little more than a week since the tragedy, multiple lawsuits have been filed against Scott and promoter Live Nation. Blount’s family is among those suing. Ex-employees from ScoreMore, a promoter of Astroworld alongside Live Nation, recently scrutinized the company for alleged disorganization, cost-cutting, and unprofessionalism.
At the BTS concert in Tokyo on Friday (April 17), j-hope opened up to ARMY with heartbreaking news. His grandmother, who played a major role in raising him and had always been proud of his journey with the group, has passed away.
Speaking to the packed crowd at the Tokyo Dome, the K-pop star chose to be open with fans about what he was going through. “Honestly, this might be a bit of a heavy thing to share, but I really wanted to express how I’m feeling today,” he said, translated from Korean into English. “Right after we arrived in Japan, I got the news that my maternal grandmother, the one who raised me from when I was little, had passed away.”
“I felt completely stunned and did not really know how to process it at first, but being around the members, sitting down together for meals, and focusing on rehearsals helped me more than I thought it would,” j-hope went on. “My grandmother was always incredibly proud, not just of me but of all the members. She truly believed in what we do. So I feel like if she was watching from above today, she would have loved every second of it.”
He closed by thanking the audience for making his first performance after the loss feel meaningful and full of support.
BTS are currently touring in support of their new album ARIRANG, which has just earned a third week at No. 1 on the Billboard 200. Following three opening shows in Goyang, South Korea, the group is set to perform twice at the Tokyo Dome before heading abroad for the North American leg. Before the tour wraps in March next year, they will also visit Latin America, Europe, Australia, and several other regions across Asia.
On the same day as the first Tokyo concert, j-hope’s solo interview with Rolling Stone was released. During the conversation, he spoke about stepping into a leadership presence within the group. “I think that’s my role on the team,” he shared. “It just comes naturally. It feels strange to even call it a role, but I just try to handle things as they come and support the other members in any way I can.”
Additional reporting from Billboard Korea.
