Last week, convicted Fyre Festival fraudster/organizer Billy McFarland made a big announcement about the second iteration of the festival. (Or first, if you consider that nothing but disaster happened on the first go round.) Billy truly promised that he’d worked out all the problems this time, in a 50-page plan he drew up during a seven-month stint in solitary, as part of the four years he spent in prison from the fallout of the original festival. Patron confidence restored! Anyway, Billy gave critical updates last week, like confirming the dates (May 30 – June 2), location (Mexico’s Isla Mujeres), and hotels partnering with Fyre for reduced rates on accommodations. Guess who all these updates were news to? The Mexican tourism board, and hotels mentioned by name on Fyre’s website. As someone from the tourism board bluntly put it: “this is an event that does not exist.” I guess contacting those folks are the kind of details that would’ve been addressed on a 51st page of his remastered plan.
Fyre Festival 2 “does not exist” according to an official statement from the tourist board in Mexico, despite the event claiming it is “real” on social media.
This comes after the festival and its founder, Billy McFarland, announced last month that its “real return” would take place from May 30 to June 2 at Isla Mujeres, a tropical island off Cancún, Mexico. Tickets went on sale this week, and prices range from $1,400 to $25,000. Premium packages are being priced as high as $1.1 million.
However, the tourist board and local officials have since claimed that no festival exists. Speaking to The Guardian, Edgar Gasca, from the tourism directorate of Isla Mujeres, said, “We have no knowledge of this event, nor contact with any person or company about it. For us, this is an event that does not exist.”
Gasca was in Bogotá, Colombia for a tourism fair when he heard the news. He confirmed he had spoken to the minister for tourism in the state of Quintana Roo and the hotels listed as part of Fyre Festival 2, and none had been approached by the event.
The Guardian reached out to Impression Isla Mujeres, one of the luxury hotels at which Fyre promised accommodation, which claimed it had not received “any approach or enquiry with regards to the event” and that it was investigating it.
“The organisers didn’t even bother to approach the authorities,” said Gasca. “It’s very strange, because any manager knows that if you’re going to hold an event, let alone a massive event, you need municipal authorisation.
“I think they thought they would just announce it and see if it got traction, then ask for the permits halfway down the path,” Gasca added. “It’s a bit of a naive way to think.”
I hope Billy has kept his prison uniform clean! Dios mío. You guys, it’s just so dumb. Like, it’s so obviously dumb, that you’d think it was actually too dumb to happen (yet again!), which in turn I guess makes me the dumb one, in the end, for doubting the depths of dumb we’re plumbing in this timeline. As I’ve said before when covering Billy McFarland, maybe I would do better in this world if I were a bit more delusional. Maybe doing the same thing twice and expecting a different outcome isn’t crazy, after all! Or maybe some lunatic libs hired actors to impersonate the contacts quoted from the tourism board and hotels, all in a malevolent deep state plot to besmirch a bright young conman who will be president one day of the United States of America and Greenland. I legitimately don’t know anymore! But even in this cockeyed world, I still think it’s a pretty safe bet that I have a better shot having a guaranteed great time on my upcoming bargain-priced Caribbean vacation, than any of the poor saps souls shelling out their hard-inherited thousands to millions for Fyre Festival 2: The (Non) Reckoning.
Note by CB: After Kismet wrote this, Billy posted a video doubling down. He says the hotels gave misleading statements, that the team has this, and that he has all this in hand, guys!
Photo note by CB: This is Hot Slut of The Era Phoebe Price posing “with fake cash during a photoshoot at a Fyre Festival set up with Billy McFarland and Bella Hadid” and dated 1/30/19. (The original Fyre Festival was in late April, 2017.) RIP DListed. MK wherever you are, we miss you.
Photos credit: RC/Backgrid
Chicken cutlets forever.
RIP DListed
Reader, I jumped when I saw that Hot Slut, smiled when I thought of DListed, and so very much appreciated the reminder by CB. I needed that on this long Wednesday, with a day that is just starting.
Happy wishes to you all in these dark times.
I miss it so much. I’ve still not filled that void
Hahahahahahahaha
Same, Roo, same
Oh Billy, thanks for the laugh.
I can’t imagine that his prison sentence and parole would allow him to do another festival, but I’m not in the legal profession. Strange world we’re living in.
The guy reminds me of Elizabeth Holmes. She’s spending her jail time re-thinking how to do her scam even better when she gets out! I guess ‘grifter’ is a true type.
I was thinking this is the absurd distraction we all need right now until the reminder that this is how presidents are made. 🤦🏻♀️
Right!? I hate that even silly stories are being ruined b/c nothing seems out of bounds these days. Sob! Still so grateful for this CB community. You guys help me keep my sanity!
I’m surprised Trump hasn’t hired Billy as the White House Special Events Director yet.
I know nothing about this, but I have to wonder… could this be money laundering somehow? Like people are sending Billy money for something they know doesn’t exist and he’s putting it somewhere else for them?
It probably is. He was sued for a multi-year offering fraud, that raised at least $27.4 million from over 100 investors. He was ordered to forfeit $26 million. I’m sure some of that money is somewhere.
At this point, anyone who shells out money to invest in this or buy a ticket for it, deserves to lose every penny. At some point you have to pay a price for your repeated abject stupidity.
Chicken Cutlets! DListed, I miss youuuuuuuu!
Its obvious based on our president how easily people can be duped, even a second time.
I knew it was BS he is shopping the idea hoping to get investors interested. He’s a walking sizzle reel. It won’t happen. The spend to mount this is too high and no ROI for the level he wants to do. It’s cheese sandwiches all over again.
I really hope vendors this time do not contract with him. They will never get paid and will lose money. Just like the last time when it all falls apart. Or never gets off the ground.
Between Billy and Casey Anthony this week. The delussions are 1 million on the crazy scale.
👏👏Kismet!! This piece was EXACTLY what was needed today. Thank you and looking forward to more. Started praying that Billy continues full throttle, we’re going to need the comedy:))
Oh, so he ordered the contracts with those hotels terminated? The contracts that they say don’t exist? I’m sure they’ll regret that (eye roll).