Travis Scott has been the subject of plenty of attention lately. While much of that attention stems from fans wondering when he’s dropping his upcoming album Utopia, the majority of this week’s headlines about him have focused on a much-hyped performance at the Pyramids at Giza, Egypt. Shortly after announcing the show, it was the Egyptian Musicians’ Syndicate raised cultural concerns and claimed the concert was canceled. However, Live Nation, the show’s promoter, said in a statement, “There have been no changes to Travis Scott’s show in Egypt; any reports to the contrary are false. We can’t wait to celebrate Utopia with you in Egypt!”
Now, Travis himself has entered the fray, sharing a statement of his own with Egypt’s ONTV via onscreen anchor Lamis Elhadidy, who posted the statement to her Twitter account.
https://twitter.com/lameesh/status/1682012909612703745
The statement reads:
I am writing to you to address the blatant inaccurate reports that have apparently lead to permits being paused for my concert scheduled for July 28, 2023 at the Giza Pyramids.
My understanding is that the Egyptians Musicians Syndicate took this action in response to bot generated fake information regarding my concerts and character. (All anyone with a grasp for modern technology and social media has to do is click on the user profile of these accounts to see that these are not real people.) Specifically, they referred to “strange rituals” that “contradict the cultural identity of the Egyptian people”.
Nothing could be further from the truth. My only intent with live performances is to unite people around the world over a shared bond in music. As a matter of fact, I just successfully played in an incredibly conservative Saudi Arabia in April for a crowd of 70,000 fans and there was no issue, hiccup or complication whatsoever. (Ask their Minister of Culture Prince Bader bin Farhan Al-Saud or see the positive press reviews here — https://www.arabnews.com/node/2271956/lifestyle). My music brings together all cultures and spreads positive messages of empowerment and creative freedom. There is not a single lyric I have written or recording I have made that advocates or endorses anything derogatory to any people, much less the Egyptian people. Nothing in my music lends itself to any kind of “strange ritual”. My performances are celebrations. I only want to lift people up. My new album is entitled Utopia, which is emblematic of my desire to accomplish that goal. I am a great admirer of Egyptian culture and history. That is why I selected the iconic Pyramids of Giza to perform and preview my first album release in five years. It means that much to me.
If you would really like to know my character and heart please do me the courtesy and favor of speaking with me before taking this drastic step that would unravel months of planning and for which I was previously granted permission. I am from Houston, Texas. I grew up in a family that respects people, loves God, respects Allah and attends church regularly. We have all seen the spread of false information online over the last few years. It is a divisive problem in the United States and certainly all over the world, Egypt included.
Finally, I have also seen mention of security concems related to my concerts and the extremely unfortunate tragedy of “AstroWorld” in 2021. Please know that I have performed hundreds of concerts before that event, and many concerts since, without a single incident. Live Nation and myself are hyper-vigilant when it comes to concert security. As you may have seen recently a grand jury declined to pursue any criminal charges related to the festival. I assure you that the concert at Giza has been planned meticulously and will have state of the art fan security in place.
Unfortunately, I am hearing that unless Live Nation is permitted to access the site by 5 PM Cairo time on July 20, we will not be able to make the targeted July 28 show date. Please don’t let the online spread of false information and hatred derail this event which will bring positive and international attention to Egypt, its economy and its amazing treasures. I implore you to do everything in your power to allow the show to proceed as planned. Thank you for your time and consideration.
