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Organizers behind this year's deadly Astroworld Fest promoted the show with footage from 2 years ago, hyping up the fact things could get crazy ... and that people could get hurt.

Check out this promotional video that was published earlier this year in May and posted by the official Astroworld Fest Instagram account -- which shows a number of news clips and civilian clips from 2019 spliced together ... demonstrating the chaos that unfolded ahead of that year's show, including the fact some people were trampled while trying to get in.

The video seems to lean into the notion Astroworld Fest was deemed dangerous/potentially treacherous, embracing that identity ... almost like they were inviting people back with that specifically in mind. You could even interpret this as a ... enter if you dare type thing.

At the end of the video, they tease the dates for this year's concert. BTW, this is the same video that Travis himself posted on his Twitter account shortly after Astroworld Fest wrapped in 2019 ... when he was accused of encouraging the wild behavior.

He wrote at the time, "THANKS TO EVERYBODY THAT PULLED UP TO RAGE !!!!"

This repackaged video used to promote this year's event has allegedly been scrubbed from Astroworld Fest's official YouTube page and other pages, but it is still up on their IG account.

On its face ... this video is pretty damning in the fact that it plays up the apparent inherent danger that lies with attending Astroworld Fest -- and rather than try to pivot away from that ... it would seem folks involved in putting the concert together encouraged round 2.

This is evidenced by the 8 deaths and dozens of other injuries that occurred on Friday night -- not to mention several video clips that appear to show concertgoers trying to relay their concerns about people passing out and dying ... but being mostly ignored and drowned out.

There are also videos that show Travis himself was at least somewhat aware of people falling into distress while he performed -- apparently acknowledging an ambulance golf cart that was working its way through the crowd, as well as taking note of someone who'd passed out in front of him. While he did alert for help for the latter ... TS carried on with the show.

After the fact, Travis described how devastated he was ... sending condolences to the deceased's family members, and promising to work with the authorities. He also denied knowing the severity of things while it was all unfolding -- saying he simply didn't realize people were dying out there. That was echoed by Kylie Jenner as well.

Travis took to Instagram to share his sadness surrounding the event ... again emphasizing he was going to work with Houston PD.

Speaking of the police ... a criminal investigation has been opened into this, as it appears at least one person might've been injected with a needle.

Ex-MLB player Pedro Feliciano -- who pitched for the New York Mets for 9 seasons -- died on Sunday night, baseball analyst Eduardo Perez reported.

He was just 45 years old.

Perez did not reveal a cause of death for Feliciano ... but the ESPN broadcaster did say the former reliever passed away in his sleep.

"He was a really good [baseball player] but a better person off the field," Perez said. "He will be missed."

Perez added Feliciano had been out jet skiing with his family earlier Sunday.

Feliciano was drafted by the Dodgers in 1995 and ultimately made his MLB debut for the Mets at 25 years old in 2002.

He went on to throw for the Mets until 2010 -- and then signed a two-year deal with the Yankees, though he didn't play for the Pinstripes in either 2011 or 2012 while battling injuries.

He eventually re-signed with the Mets in 2013, but didn't log any more time in the Big Leagues following that season.

Feliciano revealed in '13 he had been diagnosed with a rare medical condition -- one in which he said doctors found he had a "little hole" in his heart. It's unclear if that played any role in his death Sunday.

RIP

The Houston Police Chief was so concerned about crowd control at the Astroworld Festival, he went to Travis Scott's trailer to express concern over the "energy in the crowd."

Police Chief Troy Finner said the "energy" in anticipation of the festival had been escalating for months ... this according to the NY Times. The Chief attributed the energy to the pandemic, the fact that tickets went for hundreds of dollars and the event itself had a history of crowds that were difficult to control.

The Chief knew Travis personally and admired him for all the good work he did in Houston.

That said, it's clear the Chief was concerned about the swelling and anxious crowd.

The Chief may have gone to the trailer because some people who wanted to get in before the concert started knocking down barricades.

Sources connected to Travis tell TMZ ... the Chief never told Travis to pull the plug on the show. Furthermore, the sources say Travis was never told the stop the show prior to 10:10 PM -- more than an hour after the show began -- via his in-ear device. The sources go on to say the fire marshal was also mum.

Although Travis says because of the pyrotechnics, strobe lights and all, he couldn't see the scope of the calamity.

And, there's this ... our sources say at one point officers working the show near the stage were filming the concert on their cell phones ... in other words, not doing their jobs.

There was also this ominous sign ahead of the concert ... there was only 47 security personnel on-hand at the 2019 festival ... by contrast there was 528 security members at this event, underscoring the fear things could get out of control.

As we reported, 8 people died during the chaos, and hundreds were injured.

The fatalities from the event ranged from teens to young adults: a 14-year-old, a 16-year-old, two 21-year-olds, two 23-year-olds, a 27-year-old and a male whose age was unknown.

Travis Scott took to Instagram to share his sadness and condolences surrounding the event and that he was working with Houston PD. He's also vowed to refund festival tickets and has canceled an upcoming show in Vegas.

In addition to crowd control, Chief Finner said a security guard working the event felt a prick in his neck by an unknown assailant while he was trying to restrain a citizen -- and he quickly fell unconscious.

Finner says the guard was revived by use of NARCAN ... and that medical personnel did, indeed, see something on his neck that indicated he'd been stabbed with a syringe.

Parting is such sweet sorrow -- some English guy once wrote -- but for Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck it looks pretty damn sweet ... considering this lengthy and loving embrace before take-off.

Super-romantic Bennifer 2.0 was in full effect this weekend as J Lo was boarding a private jet -- the couple showed up together on the tarmac and seemed to have a hard time saying goodbye.

Ben was giving off serious "Pearl Harbor" vibes ... looking much like his character from the 2001 movie as he stood next to the jet that was about to carry his GF outta town. They hugged and kissed on the tarmac Saturday afternoon, and got in even more smooches and cuddles as she was walking up the stairs.

We can't really explain that O-face Ben made at one point, but you can almost hear the pilot yelling ... "Get a room, you 2!"

This was the first time they were seen in public since their Halloween outing in Malibu to trick or treat with their kids.

Miles Teller may see some justice after all -- the guy who allegedly clocked him in a bathroom has officially been charged with assault.

According to legal docs, obtained by TMZ, Russell Nielsen got hit with one count of 3rd-degree assault in the County of Maui. Prosecutors say he intentionally, knowingly or recklessly caused bodily injury to Miles.

Now, MT didn't look too roughed up or bothered in the immediate aftermath of the tussle earlier this year -- but it looks like he did bring home a shiner from it, which was clearly visible in photos of him once he touched down in L.A. again. So, yeah ... it would appear prosecutors feel Nielsen left enough of a mark to move forward here.

TMZ broke the story ... Miles says he was confronted by two guys in the bathroom of a restaurant while out dining with his wife, Keleigh, which then allegedly escalated into violence. Miles initially made it out like he'd been cornered and jumped by complete strangers ... as did Keleigh.

Of course, since then ... some of the pieces have fallen into place over what exactly happened and why. We've heard from people familiar with the matter Nielsen knows the Tellers through his own wife, who owns a wedding planning company -- and who apparently worked on Miles and Keleigh's ceremony at one point or another in 2019.

Our sources told us Russ was confronting Miles over money he believed they still owed for wedding planning -- some $60k worth ... and after some talking, allegedly took a swing.

We've gotten video of Russell and his wedding planner wife in other heated situations with folks in the past -- and there, too, he appeared to fly off the handle with his boo egging him on.

"Sons of Anarchy" star William Lucking's years as a Hollywood tough guy and stuntman took a toll on the actor's body, and his wife says those injuries made his final years very painful.

Lucking, who played Piney Winston on the popular show, died October 18 at his home in Vegas surrounded by family. His wife, Sigrid, tells us Lucking had a myriad of injuries over his career -- which started in the '70s -- including one motorcycle accident where he fell 80 feet off a bridge during filming for "Harold and Maude" ... landing him in a body cast for weeks.

Not only that, Lucking fell off a lot of horses and broke a lot of other bones throughout the many action roles he took up ... 2 knee replacements, back surgery, shoulder surgery and more.

Sigrid tells us Lucking spent the last year of his life in a wheelchair, was having breathing problems and his heart was failing ... "He just gave up. He was tired and in a lot of pain."

Lucking's 'SOA' character in some ways reflected his real-life, Piney Winston -- who was the most senior member of the bike club -- slowed down physically and was on oxygen as the series progressed.

Lucking was 80 when he died ... he leaves behind Sigrid, two daughters, grandkids and a sister.

There's a simple solution for Zion Williamson's reported weight issues ... so says Kenny "The Jet" Smith, who tells TMZ Sports all the Pelicans star needs to do is focus and eat less.

Sounds easy enough, right??

There have been reports that the former #1 overall pick's weight has inflated to north of 300 pounds during the offseason as he battled an injury ... and even Kenny's "Inside The NBA" co-hosts Shaquille O'Neal and Charles Barkley have been joking about the situation.

But, when we spoke with Smith at LAX this week, we got real about Zion ... asking how he can shed the extra pounds and get back to game shape by the time he's back to 100%.

"Every player in their career... they're going to get hurt at some point if you have a long career," Kenny told us. "In that time, you gotta figure out how to stay in shape and stay into a basketball body."

Kenny says he's confident the 21-year-old will figure it out ... and it won't be as hard as people think.

"The easiest part is he'll figure out how to eat less. It's not hard when it's your profession. He puts the hours in to become a great basketball player. He'll figure out those hours he needs to keep his body right."

"It's not hard, just eat less."

We also talked to The Jet about Scottie Pippen's recent comments about Michael Jordan only making "The Last Dance" doc to prove to the youngins that he's still the G.O.A.T over LeBron James ... and he sets Pip straight.

Blueface is a wanted man -- there's a warrant out for his arrest, related to the on-camera beatdown of a nightclub bouncer ... TMZ has learned.

Law enforcement sources tell us felony arrest warrants were recently issued for Blueface and 2 other men who allegedly carried out the brutal attack of the bouncer, back in September in L.A.'s San Fernando Valley.

We're told Blueface and his pals have each been hit with 2 felony charges ... one for assault, and another for robbery. Our sources say the robbery charge stems from an accusation that one of the men took a chain from the bouncer.

TMZ broke the story ... video captured the brutal incident, which appears to show Blueface and 3 other men stomping, kicking and punching the doorman.

The man had to be taken to a hospital by ambulance, and needed stitches.

We obtained photos of his alleged injuries -- the guy looked to have been beaten pretty badly -- and we knew the police had taken a battery report after the incident.

Now cops will be on the lookout to arrest Blueface and co. ... if they don't surrender on their own.

Arizona actor Chelsea Kane Staub was only 21 years old when she locked in the role as the sharp-dressed stylist Stella Malone -- who keeps the brothers looking good as a childhood friend -- on the 2009 Disney Channel Original Series "Jonas," as well as, "Jonas L.A."

Chels shared the short-run show with some growing talent including Nicole Anderson who plays Stella's best friend and the fan club president, Macy Misa .. and of course the triple threat trio Joe, Kevin and Nick Jonas as the title characters.

The legal floodgates are starting to open -- Travis Scott and Live Nation have just been sued by somebody alleging they were injured during Astroworld ... the first claim of what may prove to be many more to come.

A guy named Manuel Souza already lawyered up and reportedly filed suit Saturday in Harris County District Court -- claiming he was hurt during the madness that unfolded ... and alleging both negligence and gross negligence on behalf of Trav, LN and others he lists as defendants.

In his docs, obtained by Billboard, Souza says the tragedy was "predictable and preventable" -- due, in part, to what he characterizes as warning signs earlier in the day that he says should've been red flags to festival organizers ... but were allegedly ignored.

Souza describes how people first stampeded their way into NRG Park when things were first opening up ... with folks allegedly climbing over security gates and trampling over one another. Despite this, Souza claims nothing was done to further address or curtail things.

He goes on to allege that concert organizers made a conscious effort to let the show go on, despite clear evidence all around them that people were in serious distress ... and suffering "serious obvious injury." Souza believes they purposely chose this route, claiming they were well aware of the rising risk that was escalating by the minute during the night.

As for why Souza thinks Travis is at fault here ... it's not entirely clear what he's claiming Trav did or didn't do during the show that led to what Souza believes was avoidable. He does cite Travis' history of allegedly encouraging violence among fans at past concerts of his, which Souza says has led to people getting hurt. But beyond that ... it doesn't appear he connects specific dots in this instance as to why TS, specifically, is to blame.

It's also not entirely clear what injuries Souza is claiming were inflected against himself, but he does repeatedly cite the 8 dead and dozens of others who were also hurt ... while going on to claim that profit was chosen over the safety and well-being of concertgoers.

Souza is suing for at least a million dollars in damages. We're working on getting a copy of the lawsuit ourselves -- we've reached out to Live Nation and Travis for comment.

Saweetie says she wants children in her life -- and one Nick Cannon seems to be ready to deliver ... if she wants to take him up on it.

The rapper tweeted out her parental desires Saturday, writing ... "I want some babies." Short and sweet -- no real other context either, but on its face ... it sounds like she's ready to be a mom.

While there were a number of normies in her comments who offered up their services to get that done -- Nick actually stood out among the rest with a not-so-subtle offer of his own ... retweeting Saweetie's message and adding a few telling emojis.

There's a curious face emoji, a ninja emoji, a laughing emoji, and a guy raising his hand emoji. The hand-raising says it all ... NC seems to be down to provide, and as we know -- is very well-equipped to do so.

The man has fathered several children over the course of his life, including three just earlier this year -- his son, Zen, and twins Zion and Zillion ... the latter 2 having a different mother. He's got four more from previous relationships -- including a couple with Mariah Carey, a couple more with Brittany Bell.

He's talked about going celibate for a while, but seems to have backtracked on that ... indicated here in his volunteering -- not to mention what he told us the last time we got him out. Remember, Nick said he'll keep having kids ... just so long as the man upstairs keeps on allowing it.

No word from Saweetie yet if his proposition sounds appealing or not -- frankly, she probably has a lot of would-be suitors who'd be willing to give it a go ... and could have just about whoever she wanted for this mission.

Kanye West wants to honor the victims who died at Astroworld -- and he's using his religious vehicle of Sunday Service to do just that.

The rapper's latest spiritual music gathering is going on right now -- and before things officially got underway at around 1 PM PT ... there was a message posted on behalf of Kanye and co., reading, "Sunday Service dedication to the loved ones of Astroworld."

Obviously, Ye is referring to the 8 people who died while Travis Scott was performing Friday night ... not to mention the countless others who suffered injuries to varying degrees.

So far, it seems this Service has a much more somber tone than last week's -- when he brought out Marilyn Manson, Justin Bieber and others in what appeared to be broad daylight, where everyone was wearing white hoods as they engaged in worship and singing.

This time ... Kanye's got his choir and other accompanying singers dressed in all black, and they're performing in what seems to be a huge dark building, with just a sliver of light breaking through. The main choir ran through a few hymns, including some songs from "Donda" -- and now, it looks like Kanye's got a choir out there who are singing too.

No sign of Ye himself just yet ... and nobody has shared any explicit words of condolences at this point ... the show got underway, and it's been nothing but music ever since.

Ya gotta imagine Kanye might make an appearance at some point, and even say something to address the Astroworld tragedy ... as Travis is essentially his brother-in-law, and we know they're tight.

Vin Diesel seems ready to put his differences with The Rock aside -- all in the name of putting a bowtie on his baby ... namely, capping off the 'Fast & Furious' franchise.

The actor sent an open message to Dwayne on IG, posting a photo of the two of them in character from one of their 'Fast' flicks and extending an olive branch of sorts -- inviting DJ back to installment number 10, which Vin sees as crucial to putting this thing to bed.

VD writes, "My little brother Dwayne... the time has come. The world awaits the finale of Fast 10. As you know, my children refer to you as Uncle Dwayne in my house. There is not a holiday that goes by that they and you don’t send well wishes... but the time has come. Legacy awaits."

He adds, "I told you years ago that I was going to fulfill my promise to Pablo. I swore that we would reach and manifest the best Fast in the finale that is 10! I say this out of love but you must show up, do not leave the franchise idle you have a very important role to play. Hobbs can’t be played by no other. I hope that you rise to the occasion and fulfill your destiny."

It's interesting ... Vin is inviting him back, but didn't even tag The Rock or anything, which is strange because the dude is very online ... and tends to respond to stuff in a flash.

Dwayne doesn't appear to have responded just yet -- and perhaps some of this is being worked out behind the scenes, out of public view -- but ya gotta figure if he does agree to do it ... he'll do it in grandiose fashion, like most everything he does on social media.

Of course, there's no guarantee Dwayne will even be down to sign on -- because, as you probably know, they have beef ... which we thought was over and done with, but was reignited earlier this year with new comments from Vin -- and Dwayne responded.

Vin addressed the feud to Men's Health over the summer, saying he was giving The Rock a lot of "tough love" when he first started in the 'Fast' franchise ... and DJ told THR that made him "laugh hard," while going on to wish Vin and co. well on the rest of franchise.

Dwayne hasn't been in a 'Fast'-related movie since 2019, when he starred as as Agent Hobbs in the spinoff, 'Hobbs & Shaw.' Before that, he was in 4 different 'Fast' films.

Kylie Jenner seemed to be aware something was amiss during Travis Scott's set, evidenced in her serious demeanor shortly after he took the stage ... something you can now see on video.

TMZ has obtained concert footage we're told was taken about 10 minutes into Travis' performance, which eyewitnesses say got underway at 9 PM sharp ... and went on for about an hour and 15 minutes, drastically different from Houston PD's timeline of just 40 minutes.

Check out the clip ... you see Kylie, Kendall and a bunch of their entourage/security detail hanging out under a tent that's a ways away from the stage ... literally plopped down in the middle of a massive crowd that was surrounding them. At this point, Kylie appears solemn.

As you can see, she's wearing a face mask and has her hands folded together ... looking on with what one could interpret as a nervous expression, or at the very least -- a sobering one.

Her body language says a lot here too -- which is in stark contrast to her sister's ... who's maskless and rocking out with a big smile on her face. Kylie, for whatever reason, didn't seem to be in the same spirit at this point -- and one eyewitness suggests it's obvious why.

The person who shot this tells us they started to feel the crowd surge at this point and were losing control of their footing -- prompting them to want to get out ASAP. Unclear if the ambulance was working its way through the crowd by now -- or if the witness saw/heard of people passing out -- but it's plausible some of that might've been taking place here.

In any case, it's interesting the person who filmed this was feeling a sense of danger and dread right then and there.

Kylie had also filmed an ambulance in her own IG Story -- a clip she eventually deleted, while leaving the rest of her footage up.

Of course, the obvious point ... even if she was somewhat appraised of the graveness of the situation as everything unfolded, what could she have possibly done???

Indeed, probably nothing from where she was ... as she was nowhere near the stage, and had no realistic way to get a hold of Travis STAT as he carried on with his set. Still, the one thing that remains curious is Houston PD's timetable of when things were shut down.

The Chief, Troy Finner, said his team had been told by event organizers that Travis took the stage at 9:30 PM and wrapped at 10:10 PM, but people are disputing that ... claiming it went on for much longer, and that the danger was also present for much longer than just that window.

He also said, perhaps the reason things weren't wrapped earlier was because of fear of a riot breaking out among a young crowd ... which is interesting logic. Now, Finner did say they would look into the timing even further to pin down a more accurate sequence of events -- but based on this account we've been given, this madness lasted for quite a while.

Elon Musk is about to lose a big chunk of his fortune, assuming he follows through on what he said he'd do ... namely, sell off a ton of stock based on nothing but public consensus.

The Tesla chief entertained a wild concept over the weekend ... the notion that he'd literally unload a crap ton of his company shares -- 10% of it, no less -- if Twitter users deemed it necessary for him to do so ... and then posting a 24-hour poll to that end.

He wrote, "Much is made lately of unrealized gains being a means of tax avoidance, so I propose selling 10% of my Tesla stock. Do you support this?" EM added ... "I will abide by the results of this poll, whichever way it goes."

Welp, the people have spoken ... and as it turns out, they're down for Elon to lower his net worth some -- with nearly 58% of the 3.5 million who voted deciding yes ... he oughta do it.

Elon doesn't appear to have responded to the results just yet ... but if he does, in fact, stay true to his word -- he stands to have at least $25 billion taxed, as that's how much 10% of his portfolio would be as it relates to Tesla stock. Word is ... he's got around 193 million shares, which makes up about $250 billion of his estimated $318 billion total wealth.

The funny part ... even if he unloaded 10% just like that -- and had a significant amount taxed -- he'd still be richer than Jeff Bezos, whose net worth is idling at around $200 bil. So, $25B is almost like chump change to Mr. Musk!

Part of the reason Elon appears to have even considered doing this -- assuming he's serious, that is -- is because there's a lot of chatter, especially on Capitol Hill, about enforcing a wealth tax on the uber-rich ... which would tax their sitting wealth as opposed to their income.  Elon notes in explicit terms ... he does not receive a salary or bonuses of any kind.

Travis Scott is taking heat for apparently not reacting appropriately to scores of fans who were in distress, unlike other musicians who critics feel handled similar scenarios better.

A few different clips are making the rounds Sunday ... posted by folks who are pissed at TS for seemingly dragging his feet in shutting down his set as people in the crowd were dropping like flies all around him -- something Travis says he was not fully aware of.

However, many aren't buying that -- and feel he could've (and should've) done better, like Dave Grohl once did, or Billie Eilish once did ... or even like Playboi Carti did a few months ago.

The first video that's being compared to the Astroworld fiasco is a concert DG and the Foo Fighters put on in 2018 down in Minnesota ... where the frontman stopped the show to a dead halt to address a kid he saw near the front who didn't have a seat.

Dave moved mountains mid-performance to accommodate the boy and his parent -- something the child's folks appreciated after the fact. Not entirely the same as what went down at Astroworld, but it just shows ... Dave is aware of his audience even while playing.

Then, there's Billie ... who also paused her concert in 2018 over in Stockholm after fans in the crowd pointed out to her that someone had passed out, with BE handing down water from the stage and making sure the girl was alright. This didn't appear to be nearly as packed as Travis' concert was -- but still, people are making the comparison.

Finally, we have Playboi ... who paused his set over the summer at Lollapalooza after a stagehand rushed up to him as he was taking center stage to tell him folks were going unconscious -- something PC literally addressed to the crowd right on the spot.

To be fair to Travis ... there are countless instances of big concerts continuing on as people fell ill or unconscious or anything else out in the sea of bodies -- something the performing artist cannot always see or take notice of considering the circumstances, even if it's up close.

The most prominent example of this occurring -- namely, the show carrying on while chaos unfolds below -- is Michael Jackson ... who would often cause fans to pass out/faint/convulse just seeing him ... which would require them to be carried out and away.

We're not aware of too many times where Mike stopped everything to check on one fan -- and, frankly, that's not really realistic to expect either for a concert of that size.