Stories of downfall don't always leave room for redemption, but Billy McFarland has announced his plan to reverse the fortunes of 2017's ill-fated Fyre Festival in early 2025.
Talking with NBC News' Savannah Vendors in TODAYMcFarland has officially announced Fyre Festival II, which he says will take place in April on a private island in the Caribbean off the coast of Mexico.
McFarland says that with lessons learned, he is making changes in an effort to rebuild festival culture's most infamous brand. The three-day event will attempt to leverage existing infrastructure for accommodations and amenities. He also said that Fyre has enlisted the services of an outside production company to handle logistics, whose name he will reveal later.
After pleading guilty to wire fraud charges, McFarland was released from prison in 2022. However, he still owes compensation to employees and investors of the original Fyre Festival amounting to an estimated $26 million. So the stakes couldn't be higher this time around.
“Fyre II has to work,” McFarland said recently. The Wall Street Journal.
McFarland, however, remains cognizant of the fact that it is unlikely that all of his financial debt will be wiped out in one fell swoop.
“It's difficult because this is the deeper issue, where there are people who were legitimately hurt and defrauded by Fyre I, whether it's an employee and a family member of an employee, a ticket holder,” she told Sellers. TODAY“There's a lot of work to be done to get the money back to those people. I don't think it's practical. I actually don't think it's right to try to do all that in the first year. I think that would lead to short-term decisions.”
Despite the debacle of the original Fyre Festival on the Bahamian island of Great Exuma, it seems thousands of consumers are still willing to put their faith in McFarland's vision for Fyre II. Just 10 hours after the announcement, revealed Applications have been submitted for more than 5,000 tickets, and it has been noted that the event will only accommodate 3,000 attendees in total. Ticket packages will range in price from $1,400 to a staggering $1.1 million per ticket.
Those interested in purchasing tickets can send their request hereFyre Festival II is scheduled for April 25-28, 2025.
EXCLUSIVE: Billy McFarland reveals date and location for Fyre Festival II
“Fyre Festival II is taking place on April 25, 2025, so that’s seven and a half months away,” he said. @watchsavannah“We have a private island off the coast of Mexico in the Caribbean." image.twitter.com/Qw5gq9NTNA
— TODAY (@TODAYshow) September 9, 2024
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