Concern over the highly publicized return of the fraudulent Fyre Festival is mounting after the government of the Mexican island where this year’s music event is supposed to take place issued a statement this week saying organizers have not requested permits.
Billy McFarland, creator of the disastrous 2017 Fyre Festival, which scammed people out of thousands of dollars, was sentenced to six years of prison time for his financial crimes, though he only ended up serving about four years from 2018 to 2022.
“I’m sure many people think I’m crazy for doing this again,” McFarland said Monday in a statement. “But I’d feel crazy not to do it again. After years of reflection and thoughtful planning, the new team and I have amazing plans for FYRE 2.”
The three-day music and arts event is scheduled to take place on Isla Mujeres, Mexico, between May 30 and June 2, but the government of Isla Mujeres doesn’t seem so sure.
“Due to information circulating in the media regarding the ‘FYRE FESTIVAL II,’ the General Directorate of Tourism of Isla Mujeres informs that no person or company has requested permits from this office or any other Municipal Government department for said event,” the Isla Mujeres government posted in a Feb. 26 statement on its Facebook page.
Edgar Gasca, from the tourism directorate of Isla Mujeres, told The Guardian that Isla Mujeres leaders “have no knowledge of this event, nor contact with any person or company about it.”
The original 2017 Fyre Fest promised big-name music acts including Blink 182, Migos and other artists; celebrity model attendees including the Hadid sisters and Emily Ratajkowski; luxury accommodations; and fine food, with tickets ranging from $1,200 to over $100,000.
Ultimately, however, the festival failed and went viral on social media after Hulu and Netflix published documentaries about the failed beach bash, making the #fyrefraud hashtag go viral at the time.
A photo of a meal at the fest — specifically, a shabby sandwich on white bread thrown together in a Styrofoam box — also went viral, showcasing one small part of the larger scam that was the original Fyre Fest eight years ago.
The festival reached a settlement with 277 ticket holders in 2021, when it was ordered to pay each recipient an award of $7,220.
Mark Breen, strategic director at Safe Events Global, told Fox News Digital that it is “of course possible that Fyre Festival 2 can succeed where Fyre Festival 1 failed so dismally.”
“In order for that to happen, though, Billy will have to do what he did acknowledge at the time he didn’t do, and should have done, for Fyre Festival 1 — he needs to actually involve proven experienced event and festival professionals, who have delivered events and festivals at this scale before,” Breen said. “If he does that, there’s no reason his stated vision for Fyre Festival 2 can’t actually be realized. Whether he actually does it though remains to be seen.”
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