A wrongful homicide lawsuit filed Wednesday in Los Angeles says negligence and lax security amid a large gang presence at a Live Nation music festival led to the fatal stabbing of rapper Drakeo the Ruler in December.
The lawsuit, which seeks more than $25 million in damages on behalf of the rapper’s minor son, names festival organizer Live Nation, the world’s leading concert promoter, as defendant, along with three co-promoters – Bobby Dee Presents , C3 Presents and Jeff Shuman – as well as Major League Soccer’s Los Angeles Football Club, which sublet the stadium for the event.
Drakeo, born Darrell Caldwell, was preparing to perform at the festival on the night of Dec. 18 when he was confronted backstage by more than 100 people, according to the lawsuit — “a violent mob of alleged members of a Los Angeles-based Blood’s gang.”
The attack “was the result of a complete and abnormal failure by all defendants to take appropriate security measures to ensure the safety and well-being of the artists they invited and hired to their music festival,” the indictment said. At a press conference last week, lawyers for the rapper’s family called his death a “targeted murder.”
A spokesperson for Once Upon a Time in LA, which is owned by Live Nation, said in a statement that the festival “joins Drakeo’s family, friends and fans as they mourn his loss” and “continues to support local authorities in their investigation while chasing the facts.” The company declined to comment on the lawsuit; the other defendants did not respond to requests for comment on the filing.
Live Nation has faced criticism over festival security in recent months after 10 people were killed in the crowd at Travis Scott’s Astroworld festival in Houston in November. As dozens of Astroworld lawsuits continue, the House Committee on Oversight and Reform has said it would investigate the festival’s organizers.
Once Upon a Time in LA would see artists like Snoop Dogg, Ice Cube and Al Green appear on three stages. But the lawsuit argued that given the festival’s location in South Central Los Angeles (one of the “most dangerous areas in the city”) and the alleged criminal ties of some of the performers on the bill, it was “very likely that the music festival would attract visitors”. a strong presence of gang activity.”
Drakeo, 28, was a rising star on the city’s rap scene who had collaborated with mainstream acts like Drake, but was also targeted by the Bloods, the suit said. In 2019, he was acquitted of murder charges in connection with the murder of a member of the gang; after a plea deal regarding additional conspiracy charges in the same murder, he was released from prison in November 2020.
“It was well known to the public that certain members of the Bloods gang had rejected the acquittal and were seeking ‘street justice’ against Mr Caldwell to avenge their murdered member,” the indictment said.
The lawsuit specifically cited the “ongoing public feud” between Drakeo and Los Angeles rapper YG, though it added that “there is no evidence that YG had anything to do with the events” leading up to Drakeo’s murder. An eyewitness and a member of Drakeo’s entourage, which was published last month in Los Angeles Magazine about the rapper’s death, also called for YG’s presence at the festival, raising concerns about Drakeo’s family that the rivalry had played a role in the murder.
YG representatives said he has not been questioned by police in connection with the incident, but declined to comment further. The Los Angeles Police Department has not announced any arrests in connection with the case and the investigation is ongoing.
According to the lawsuit, Drakeo’s entourage of 15 was split into two smaller groups by festival security due to Covid protocols, leaving the rapper with one personal security guard, who was not allowed to carry a weapon on the concert site.
An initial altercation between Drakeo’s group and several other people was followed by numerous others, “many dressed in red and in ski masks”, who descended on the rapper, resulting in a “cruel and relentless attack” that left Drakeo with a ultimately fatal outcome. stab wound to his neck.
The promoters and security personnel “knew or should have known that Mr Caldwell’s safety was in danger,” the indictment said.
