The Guardian spiega le ragioni per cui, in seguito alla morte di 10 persone durante un concerto di Travis Scott in occasione del tour Astroworld, diversi artisti di fama come Billie Eilish, Adele e Harry Styles hanno deciso di interrompere i loro spettacoli al primo segno di problemi.

“I would guarantee that since Astroworld, management companies are saying to their artists: if you see this happening, do not in any circumstances incite the crowd,” says Steve Allen. A tour manager for Led Zeppelin, Blur, Pulp and Red Hot Chili Peppers, he is now head of the consultancy organisation Crowd Safety and was an expert witness in the Astroworld civil lawsuits. “If someone is saying stop the show, then stop the show. If not, it’ll be the end of your career.”

Le procedure di gestione della folla durante i concerti furono messe a punto per la prima volta durante il tour 1997 degli Oasis, su specifica volontà della band. Da allora sono diventate lo standard per la gestione di eventi in tutto il mondo, e più di recente la riapertura di festival e tour dopo due anni di pandemia sembra aver reso il tema ancora più delicato.

After nearly 18 months of being deprived of live music, crowds are generally more excited across the board. “You might think Rod Stewart: no problem at all. Wrong!” says Allen. “I see the genuine excitement among [all people at gigs] as if they have a Willy Wonka ticket.”

La volontà di fermare il concerto, d’altra parte, arriva sempre più spesso dagli artisti, che in alcuni casi derivano quasi il 75% degli introiti tramite eventi e concerti. Un incidente può mettere a repentaglio un tour o l’intera carriera di un artista.

Increasingly, it’s the artist who triggers it. Fans have quickly come to understand these gig pauses as reflecting genuine concern on the part of the artist. Post-Astroworld, Billie Eilish was widely praised as one of the first musicians to pause proceedings in order to get a fan an inhaler. In turn, this reactivity from artists has created an expectation of safety among fans – particularly as they and their favourite artists return to a changed industry.