Houston is a city of fighters all around. For the city, the last few years have been nothing but hurricane after hurricane, devastating natural disasters beating the city down. Travis Scott, Houston raised rapper, on the other hand, has had a terrific last few years. From collaborative projects with Quavo to perhaps his biggest release yet, Astroworld, the young star has been, for lack of a better term, killing it lately. And what better way to celebrate his success than by sharing the wealth with the place that birthed him. When Scott stated that he wanted to put the Astroworld fest on so that Houston would have “something fun to do” he wasn’t just speaking bluntly, he was saying the absolute truth. These people need SOMETHING FUN! Sometimes the most important thing is to bring a community together simply to take the collectives minds off of recent hardships and celebrate the culture. The lineup was packed with Houston and Texas talent and the entire festival was filled with art of Houston icons. Most notably the lineup included “Houston All-Stars”, a collection of talented rappers from Houston (including Maxo Kream) all performing on one stage promoting the city’s talented underground artists. Other Texas performers included Post Malone, the Texas-native trap singer.

For me personally, the trip to Astroworld felt like a pilgrimage home. I was born in Houston and lived there until around the time I was 6. While a lot of my family still lives in Houston, I have found that I rarely spend time in it and never really think of it as my “hometown”. But coming to Astroworld I felt more welcome in the city than I had in a long time. It was a pleasant reminder for me that its never too late to get in touch with your roots, and, more importantly, it was a much-needed celebration for Houston.