A couple of years ago, the life of one of hip hop’s fastest-rising stars was tragically cut short.
Gustav Åhr – better known as Lil Peep – died from an accidental overdose of Fentanyl and Xanax back in 2017 on a tour bus in Arizona, hours before he was set to perform.
Now, as the New York Times reports, the late rapper’s mother and administrator of his estate Liza Womack has filed a lawsuit in Los Angeles County Superior Court against his management, First Access Entertainment, claiming the company “fostered, promoted and encouraged” drug use while he was on tour, pushing him on to “stage after stage in city after city.”
“This is something that I must do as a mother,” said Womack in an interview.
“I feel very concerned that [young artists] not be exploited. What Gus had to live through is actually horrifying to me, and I’m sure he’s not the only person his age in this situation.”
Lil Peep’s mercurial career took off around 2016, emerging as one of the biggest names in the emerging “emo-rap” genre. Peep openly spoke about his drug use and struggle with mental health in his music.
As the Times points out in their article, this is the first recent case in which an artist’s family has attempted to hold the music industry responsible for an artist’s death.
In response, First Access Entertainment – who partnered with Peep back in 2016 – have issued a statement saying claims its employees contributed to Peep’s death are “categorically untrue”, and that they had encouraged him to stop using drugs.
“Unfortunately, in spite of our best efforts, he was an adult who made his own decisions and opted to follow a different, more destructive path.
“While First Access is deeply saddened by Lil Peep’s untimely death, we will not hesitate to defend ourselves against this groundless and offensive lawsuit.”
In other Lil Peep news, November will see the release of Everybody’s Everything, a documentary about the rapper’s life which premiered at SXSW earlier this year. Watch the trailer for the film below.
