Fyre Festival founder says the brand is now for sale, second festival canceled: ‘I can’t risk a repeat.’ Here’s how we got here.

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Fyre Festival creator Billy McFarland announced connected Wednesday that helium and his squad are selling the festival’s marque aft facing “challenges” portion trying to nutrient Fyre Festival 2.

The festival, which was scheduled to instrumentality spot successful Playa Del Carmen, Mexico, from May 30 to June 2, was McFarland’s 2nd effort astatine hosting a multiday euphony festival aft the disastrous Fyre Festival helium co-planned with rapper Ja Rule successful 2017, which resulted successful him pleading blameworthy to ligament fraud and being sentenced to six years successful national prison.

In a station connected Instagram, McFarland explained that readying Fyre Festival 2 was astir “finishing what I started and making things right.” But, helium wrote that helium and his squad realized “the champion mode to execute our goals is to merchantability the FYRE Festival brand, including its trademarks, IP, integer assets, media scope and taste superior — to an relation that tin afloat recognize its vision.”

“Giving power of the marque to a caller radical is the astir liable mode to travel done connected what we acceptable retired to do,” McFarland continued. “We volition prime the caller radical based connected their quality to execute the vision.”

Anyone funny successful the marque tin sojourn its website to spot a database of assets that volition beryllium included successful the purchase, including email and substance interaction lists, and screenshot attachments showing Fyre Festival’s societal media scope and website traffic.

Interested buyers tin capable retired a signifier astatine the bottommost of the page.

This quality comes 1 week aft it was archetypal reported that Fyre Festival 2 had been postponed. At that time, Fyre Festival organizers told summons buyers they were “vetting caller locations and volition denote our big destination soon,” according to an email obtained by TMZ.

Katie Mather/Yahoo News

Katie Mather/Yahoo News

In May 2017, McFarland and Ja Rule were sued for $100 cardinal successful a class-action suit connected behalf of the attendees. The pursuing month, McFarland was arrested and charged with ligament fraud successful Manhattan national tribunal for his engagement successful organizing the Fyre Festival. He pleaded blameworthy and was sentenced to six years successful national situation successful October 2018.

McFarland was relocated to a halfway location successful March 2022 aft serving little than 4 years and was nary longer nether location apprehension arsenic of September 2022. Two years later, helium confirmed his plans to effort and big different festival

Here’s what’s happened since then.

September 2024: McFarland confirms connected the Today amusement that Fyre Festival 2 volition instrumentality spot from April 25 to April 28, 2025.

“We person a backstage land disconnected the seashore of Mexico successful the Caribbean, and we person an unthinkable accumulation institution who’s handling everything from crockery to nuts,” helium said. He did not authorities the sanction of the island.

February 24, 2025: Fyre Festival 2 tickets spell connected sale, ranging successful outgo from $1,400 to $1.1 million. The tract advertises that the 2nd Fyre Festival volition instrumentality spot connected Isla Mujeres, a tropical land disconnected of Cancún, Mexico. No artists are announced arsenic taking portion successful the event.

“Fyre 2 is real,” McFarland says during different quality connected Today. “My imagination is yet becoming a reality.”

Read much from Yahoo Entertainment: Fyre Festival 2 tickets spell connected merchantability arsenic Billy McFarland attempts to travel backmost from 2017 disaster: 'My imagination is yet becoming a reality'

February 27: Edgar Gasca, a typical from the tourism directorate of Isla Mujeres, tells the Guardian erstwhile asked astir Fyre Festival 2, “For us, this is an lawsuit that does not exist.”

March 21: McFarland announces connected Instagram that the festival volition present instrumentality spot “in the bosom of the Riviera Maya.”

March 27: Fyre Festival hosts a property league astatine Martina Beach Club successful Playa Del Carmen, Mexico. During the property conference, McFarland announces the lawsuit volition beryllium held successful Playa del Carmen from May 30 to June 2.

Read much from Yahoo Entertainment: Fyre Festival 2 is inactive on, Billy McFarland says. How helium plans to fastener down lodging and philharmonic artists.

March 30: McFarland posts a video connected Instagram labeled an “Important FYRE Festival Update.” In it, helium claims determination volition beryllium 1,800 attendees and that a lineup volition soon beryllium released.

“We’ll person DJs, rappers, reggae artists, popular stars, but besides athletes, divers, models, pilots and creators who volition pb the experiences for our guests,” McFarland says. “We’ll person dozens of artists successful a backstage party-like setting.”

April 2: Playa del Carmen City Hall posts connected X: “There volition beryllium nary lawsuit called ‘Fyre 2’ successful Playa del Carmen.”

April 4: McFarland writes connected X that helium has been “working straight with the authorities of Playa del Carmen (PDC) and their officials since March 5, 2025 to guarantee a harmless and palmy event.”

April 16: NBC News reports that an alert was temporarily posted connected the Fyre Festival 2 summons site, saying the lawsuit had been postponed and attendees would beryllium getting emails confirming a caller date.

ABC News reports the festival is postponed, citing an unnamed summons holder who says they received an email saying, "The lawsuit has been postponed and a caller day volition beryllium announced. We person issued you a refund. Once the caller day is announced, astatine that time, you tin repurchase if it works for your schedule."

McFarland reportedly confirmed the postponement to TMZ, blaming the outgo of permits and saying that helium and the organizers were already looking for caller locations and dates for summons buyers. TMZ published the alleged email organizers sent retired to summons buyers, which states, “FYRE Festival 2 volition nary longer instrumentality spot successful Playa del Carmen, Mexico.”

April 23: McFarland posts an announcement connected Instagram that helium is selling Fyre Festival branding to anyone interested. He says, “For FYRE Festival 2 to succeed, it’s wide that I request to measurement backmost and let a caller squad to determination guardant independently, bringing the imaginativeness to beingness connected this unthinkable island.”

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