There’s a fun rabbit hole to be had with scam festivals. The first popular iteration of being sold a dream and receiving a disappointment was the infamous 2014 Tumblr convention, DashCon. However, nothing really blew up as much as Fyre Fest, the 2017 Caribbean island music festival so fraudulent that it was the focus of not one, but two separate documentaries.
Billy McFarland, the frat bro mind behind Fyre Fest, received a six-year prison sentence in 2019 after pleading guilty to a boatload of fraud charges. He was released in early 2022 and this year, went on a media apology tour. But now it looks like Billy’s back because, on April 9, he announced Fyre Fest II.
“I Don’t Know Nothing About It”
Fyre Festival II is finally happening.
Tell me why you should be invited.
— Billy McFarland (@pyrtbilly) April 10, 2023
So before we get to whether Ja Rule is involved again, we have to ask a question. Is Billy McFarland throwing another Fyre Festival to make the money to pay back the people he owes from the first Fyre Festival? As part of his court sentence, McFarland was ordered to pay back $26 million in fraudulent investments he accepted for Fyre Fest I. On April 12, he even tweeted that he is holding an NYC cookout with Andy King and “all proceeds go to people who are owed”. So there’s that. But then the question has to be asked – why? The first Fyre Fest wasn’t a festival gone wrong, like DashCon. It was literally a scam. There was no Fyre Fest to sequel. It was basically a prototype of Squid Game. And yet, Billy is out here once again.
But now for the bit you’re actually here for. Is Ja Rule involved again? As you may remember, Ja Rule was a major player, and purported headline act, for Fyre Fest I. However Ja was eventually dropped from the $100 million lawsuit against McFarland and other Fyre Fest defendants. So is he back? No. According to a report from PEOPLE, Ja was very clear about Fyre Fest II. “I don’t know nothing about it. I ain’t in it!” Ja said. But there you have it, Fyre Fest II is coming to an island paradise near you, and Ja Rule is steering well clear this time.
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