Shocking absolutely nobody, the followup to Fyre Fest — the 2017 festival that crashed and burned so hard that it became a metaphor for failed ventures — has turned into an epic dumpster fire as well.
The cursed sequel was originally supposed to take place in Playa del Carmen, Mexico, in late May. Then last week, organizers announced that the event had been "postponed," promising that a "new date will be announced."
Then the announcement mysteriously vanished. Shortly afterward, organizers tried to assure ticket holders, some of whom seemingly had shelled out thousands of dollars, that the festival was "still on."
"We are vetting new locations and will announce our host destination soon," read the new message.
Now, the disastrous event has taken yet another chaotic turn. According to a "special announcement" posted to the festival's social media feeds and official website on Wednesday, promoter and convicted fraudster Billy McFarland revealed that he would be selling the Fyre Festival and all of its IP to an "operator that can fully realize its vision."
"This brand is bigger than any one person and bigger than what I’m able to lead on my own," he wrote. "It’s a movement. And it deserves a team with the scale, experience, and infrastructure to realize its potential."
It's a baffling sequence of events that highlights how incredibly sketchy the entire affair continues to be.
Of course, practically anybody should've seen it all coming. The original Fyre Fest became a global poster child for half-baked ideas and the willingness of clout-chasing influencers to buy into ludicrous hype.
From woefully inadequate food and shelter to furious artists who'd been scheduled to perform at the event, the festival descended into a catastrophe of epochal proportions.
McFarland spent four years in prison after pleading guilty to two charges of wire fraud in connection with the event.
And two years after being released, the fraudster appears to have had enough of organizing music festivals.
"We have decided the best way to accomplish our goals is to sell the FYRE Festival brand, including its trademarks, IP, digital assets, media reach, and cultural capital," McFarland wrote in the announcement.
On his way out, the felon threw the media and local Mexican officials under the bus, arguing that "support quickly turned into public distancing once media attention intensified."
Local tourism officials had told The Guardian that they had never been informed of the event, claims that the festival quickly denied.
Plenty of questions remain. Is Fyre Fest 2 even still on? As of the time of writing, the website is selling $130 hoodies and $70 bucket hats — but tickets appear to be unavailable.
Was McFarland pushed out — fyred, if you will — or did he leave of his own accord? Could there be even more damaging info that hasn't yet come to light?
Perhaps it's for the best for him to part ways, considering how much of a disaster the original festival and its plagued sequel have turned out to be.
"The next chapter of FYRE will be bigger, better, and built to last without me at the helm," McFarland promised.
More on the festival: Fyre Fest 2 Is Already Crumbling Into Embarrassing Chaos
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