The Weeknd Tour Worker Sues Live Nation Over Forklift Injury

In the past year, the team at Universal Music Publishing Group has worked on deals for The Weeknd, Univision, Neil Diamond and the estates of Juan Gabriel, Elvis Presley and Frank Zappa, just to name a few. Frazer Harrison/GI

A stagehand hired to prepare The Weeknd‘s After Hours Til Dawn Tour stopover at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas on August 14, 2022, has filed suit against Live Nation Entertainment, alleging his leg was run over by a forklift while the stage was being built.

Stagehand Steve Genovese was reportedly working for a company hired by Live Nation to construct the stage for the concert when the accident occurred. The complaint alleges five counts of civil liability including negligence, negligent hiring and gross negligence.

“Genovese was reported ‘run over by a forklift which was being operated by another worker on site,’” the complaint reads. “As a result, plaintiff suffered severe, excruciatingly painful and permanently disabling injuries to his leg. The flesh and muscle were torn away from his leg and were detached from the bones.”

The lawsuit also names concert promoter C3 Presents, business management firm David Weise & Associates and Cowboys Stadium, LP (which owns AT&T Stadium) as defendants. The Weeknd is not listed as a defendant.

“Defendants had the knowledge, ability, and duty to prevent the severe and life-altering injuries,” the complaint reads, but allegedly “placed more value on their own financial gain than on the safety of the workers who helped put on The Weeknd concert.”

According to the suit, there was no ambulance or EMS personnel on site when the accident occurred, which “significantly delayed” medical care. The complaint continues: “[Genovese] spent more than a month in the hospital where he underwent numerous surgeries to save his leg, which is now horrifically and permanently disfigured and impaired.”

Genovese is seeking damages for medical expenses, physical pain and suffering, mental anguish and emotional distress, loss of earning and earning capacity, physical impairment, disfigurement, “loss of society and enjoyment of life,” out of pocket expenses and more.

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