RnB singer Miguel caused quite the stir at this year’s Gotye-scooped Billboard Music Awards after he severely misjudged an impromptu leap from stage and drop-kicked two fans during his live performance. Now The Age reports that Miguel’s enthusiastic jump could see him embroiled in a legal stoush after one of the injured female spectators is taking action after claims of possible brain damage.
The 27-year-old musician attempted an improvised leap from the main stage to the adjoining catwalk while performing his hit ‘Adorn’ live on the televised awards ceremony, but fell short of his target, with his pointed boots collecting one fan in the head, while his leg wrapped and slammed a spectator’s head into the stage.
The singer didn’t miss a beat and continued performing uninterrupted, much to the shock of millions of viewers of the Las Vegas ceremony in May. The incident instantly went viral, with tweets, YouTube footage, and fan-made .gifs circulating online.
Khyati Shah is the unfortunate fan whose head was caught under Miguel’s leg, and as Billboard reports, met backstage with the singer after the flying foul-up and was interviewed alongside Miguel holding an ice pack.
“Well, I think it’s kind of clear what happened,” said the singer sheepishly “But I’m very happy to bring my new friend, Khyati, we just met . Unfortunately we did not meet under the best circumstances, but I think we’re okay.” The young woman seemed to take the drop-kick in her stride, even dropping a pun – “I ‘Adron’ him,” she said.
But according to TMZ, Shah’s lawyer, Vip Bola, the fan is now considering legal action after being checked for brain injuries. “Some of the difficulties she’s experiencing are cognitive in nature and lead to suspicion of a neurological head injury,” said Mr. Bola, who adds that his client should have been rushed to hospital rather than offerred the “pathetic gesture” of giving her an ice pack.
They are reportedly awaiting test results from a neurologist before deciding whether to pursue an official lawsuit against Miguel.
TMZ is also claiming that Miguel had pitched the idea of jumping the sea of fans during his ‘Adorn’ performance to the Awards Ceremony organisers, but was shut down “because producers believe it was too dangerous,” citing an ‘unnamed source’ connected to the Billboard Music Awards telling TMZ that “Miguel approached producers before rehearsals and asked if he could try to jump over the crowd during his performance but producers shot down the idea.”
A representative for the RnB artist has refuted the allegations, telling Extra that “reports claiming that Miguel was warned by producers not to jump are completely false.” Adding that, “a number of attempts were made to reach Khyati and her lawyer after the performance to see how she was doing and whether any assistance could be offered. Khyati’s well-being has been and continues to be of the utmost concern to Miguel.”
After his apologetic interview backstage at the Billboard Music Awards incident, Miguel said the dramatic leap was not planned, and a result of being swept up in the moment. “Crazy thing is, when you’re performing and you’re just kind of into it, you never know where it’s gonna go and where you’re gonna go with it, and how that might turn out,” he told Billboard. “So this is one of the less favorable moments.”
You can re-watch Miguel’s flying fail in all its wincing glory below:
