Travis Scott shot several versions of his Astroworld album artwork (Pictures: REX)

Travis Scott has responded to the backlash he received after removing a transgender model from his Astroworld album cover.

The 26-year-old, who released Astroworld on Friday, says he is ‘sorry for the misunderstanding’ caused by posting a version of the album artwork on Instagram that omitted transgender model Amanda Lepore.

In a lengthy Instagram statement, captioned: ‘EVERYONE IS WELCOME TO ASTROWORLD!’, Travis thanked renowned photographer David Lachappelle and Amanda for their work on the vibrant cover.

Travis continued: ‘Astroworld is about love and expression not hate! This is very important for me to speak up about: Growing up I’ve been taught to accept everyone, not to cast people away but bring them into your home! I have nothing but respect for the LGBTQ community.’




Making reference to a previous comment from Amanda about ‘upstaging’ the rapper, Travis later added in the statement: ‘Yo Amanda you did upstage everyone even me and I can’t wait for everyone to see the booklet that me and Dave put together that includes all these images. Thank you for being apart of it. Sorry for the misunderstanding. Love you guys and thank you all.’

Showing there were no hard feelings, Amanda responded to Travis’ apology: ‘Nothing but LOVE for @travisscott and @david_lachapelle thank u for having me and i’m glad to be part of this album.’

Shot at night, the artwork in question features a large gold bust of Travis’ head as the entrance to theme park. Various models are standing outside, including Amanda who is bending over with her bum towards the camera.

Another version shows a group of children walking into the so-called theme park during the daytime with their parents.

Many were particularly surprised that Amanda had been removed from the cover as Caitlyn Jenner, the father of Travis’ girlfriend Kylie Jenner, is a transgender woman.

Astroworld is Travis’ anticipated third studio album and boasts a star-studded list of features from the likes of Drake, The Weeknd, Frank Ocean and Pharrell Williams.

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