Although Brandy’s touching tribute to the November 5 Astroworld tragedy was intended as a moment of connection in the midst of deep grief, many social media users who tuned into the 2021 American Music Awards were harshly critical. Brandy herself was not subject to any criticism or ire by viewers at home but at least one person was critical of her role as messenger. “Of course they make a black person mention astroworld,” One Twitter user wroteThis could be a reference to Travis Scott, a Black rapper who has been largely blamed for the tragedy rather than Live Nation, the live events company that was credited with being the concert’s largest producer. It has a long history of safety violations. NPR.
Some others took to Twitter to critique the Astroworld tribute’s short duration and perception that it was a mere afterthought. “[The] astroworld shoutout hahahahah so insensitive ANYWAY BEST POP ALBUM!” Read one critique. “If you aren’t going to address it properly, don’t even mention it. Just to smile and go into the next act,”Echoed Another tweet.