Billy McFarland in Los Angeles in July 2023.Photo:jfizzy/Star Max/GC Images
jfizzy/Star Max/GC Images
After 2017’s Fyre Festival fiasco,Billy McFarlandwants to give the concert experience another try.
On Monday, McFarland — the founder of the fraudulent festival — announced that Fyre Festival would be returning for a second iteration.
“Fyre Festival II tickets are officially on sale,” McFarland, 31,said in an Instagram videoon Monday. “It has been the absolute wildest journey to get here, and it really all startedduring a seven-month stint in solitary confinement. I wrote out this 50-page plan of how it would take this overall interest and demand in Fyre and how it would take my ability bring people from around the world together to make the impossible happen.”
“In the meantime, we’ll be doing pop-ups and events across the world. Guys, this is your chance to get in. This is everything I’ve been working towards,” he said, adding that the festival would return to the Caribbean.
Fyre Festival aftermath.SplashNews.com
SplashNews.com
But once guests arrived at Great Exuma, festival attendeeswalked into chaos. “Deluxe housing” translated to flimsy tents, and cheese sandwiches served as gourmet fare. When many of the musical acts failed to show due to the conditions, travelers were stranded on the island. Netflix’sFYRE: The Greatest Party That Never Happenedand Hulu’sFyre Fraudfurther documented what attendees called hellish conditions.
Here’s everything we know so far about the festival’s second run.
Who is Billy McFarland?
McFarland, the entrepreneur behind Fyre Festival, wassentenced to six years in prisonon wire fraud charges — which swindled over 80 investors out of a collective $26 million — in connection with his involvement in the ill-fated festival.
Fyre Festival.SplashNews.com
Afterreporting to jail in October 2018, McFarland apologized for his actions, and opened up to PEOPLE a month later about his regrets and hopes for the future.
There’s no venue, date or performers set for Fyre Festival 2
Much like the first run, Fyre Festival tickets are on sale with no confirmed details on a date, musical lineup, venue or exact Caribbean country.
“FF II is targeted for the end of 2024 in the Caribbean.* The FYRE Festival Pre-Sale FYRE Pass gets you 1 ticket to FYRE Festival II, as well as immediate VIP access to FYRE Events, Experiences, and Community,” thewebsite states.
It also includes a disclaimer that the date is “subject to change” and “pre-events and pop-ups are to be announced” but “will host a minimum of four events prior to the festival.”
Presale tickets range from $499 for the first $100 tickets sold to $7,999 for the final presale.
Billy McFarland was involved in another scam after Fyre Festival
Fyre Festival.Netlfix
Netlfix
After he was charged for the disastrous 2017 festival, McFarland started a new scam called NYC VIP.
According toThe New York Times,McFarland used the email list of people who purchased Fyre passes to offer tickets to exclusive events likeMet Gala, Burning Man andCoachella.
A few email recipients sent him $100,000 for the tickets which turned out to be fake. He later pleaded guilty to both Fyre Festival charges and NYC VIP.
Where is Billy McFarland now?
McFarland was released from prison in March 2022 after serving part of hissix-year sentenceand spent seven months in community confinement.
He also said he was hard at work to make Fyre Fesitval happen again.
“The Fyre vision is 10,000 people on one of the best islands in the world with the best talent in the world. The Fyre vision is the best logistics partner who will allow me to go absolutely wild and make our stamp on culture and the future of music festivals.” he said in theX (formerly known as Twitter) video. “We are here to make history guys. This is my life goal.”
In April, he wrote on X: “Fyre Festival II is finally happening, Tell me why you should be invited.”
source: people.com
