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A little more than four months after 10 people were killed at his performance during the ill-fated Astroworld Festival, Missouri City rapper Travis Scott has introduced a new multi-tier community initiative that seeks to devise solutions that support event safety.
Scott, whose real name is Jacques Bermon Webster II, took to Instagram to introduce Project HEAL, a joint effort with the Cactus Jack Foundation, Houston NBC affiliate KPRC reported.
“Over the past few months I’ve been taking the time and space to grieve, reflect and do my part to heal my community," Scott wrote in the post. "Most importantly, I want to use my resources and platform moving forward toward actionable change. This will be a lifelong journey for me and my family. While it’s easy for corporations and institutions to stay in the shadows, I feel as a leader in my community, I need to step up in times of need. My team and I created Project HEAL to take much needed action toward supporting real solutions that make all events the safest spaces they can possibly be."
The 30-year-old rapper added that he'll "always honor the victims of the Astroworld tragedy."
Scott's representatives said the initiative has $5 million to use on "community-focused philanthropy and investment efforts," according to KPRC.
Among these efforts is a scholarship program managed by the Waymon Webster Scholarship Fund that'll award 100 high school seniors with $10,000 scholarships.
Houston CBS affiliate KHOU reported that other facets of Project HEAL include free mental health resources, a creative design center and a tech-driven solution for event safety.
"Giving back and creating opportunities for the youth is something I’ve always done and will continue to do as long as I have the chance," Scott said on Instagram. "This program will be a catalyst to real change and I can’t wait to introduce the rest of the technology and ideas we’ve been working on."
Scott has kept a low profile since the incident, with the exception of an interview with New York City radio DJ Charlamagne Tha God in December.
He also donated 2,000 presents to children as part of his second annual holiday toy drive.
The rapper, whose hits include "Sicko Mode" and "Goosebumps," has been implicated in numerous lawsuits arising from the night of Nov. 5, 2021.
According to the Houston Daily, a report by the Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences listed compression asphyxia as the cause of death for the deceased, the youngest among them a nine-year-old boy who went to the show with his father.