FYRE Festival’s Billy McFarland owes $7 million in back taxes, as well as a stunning $26 million in restitution but still vows the second iteration of the failed festival will go on.
In an exclusive sit down with The U.S. Sun, McFarland, 32, opened up about his mountain of debt and how he thinks the only way to get out of the hole he’s in is by throwing Fyre Festival 2.
The U.S. SunFyre Fest Fraudster Billy McFarland sat down with The U.S. Sun and opened up about his crushing debt, and his hopes for Fyre Festival 2[/caption]
Spencer Clinton/The U.S. SunThe ex-con said it took about a year out of prison before anyone would even take his calls for a new venture[/caption]
McFarland, who was dubbed the Fyre Fest Fraudster, spent four years in prison after duping investors in his first failed music festival attempt.
The U.S. Sun uncovered an outstanding eye-watering IRS tax lien for McFarland for $6,887,435 and asked about it during the sitdown.
“When I was in prison, I got a debit card form to pay like $7million – in jail. I joked, where am I supposed to grab my debit card out of here with a $7million bill?”
And that is not nearly half of the money he owes.
“There’s restitution, there’s taxes, there’s everything from the pre-Fyre days that we’re working on,” McFarland explained.
“Restitution is around $26 million. And I pay that every month, so whatever I earn I go and literally give a physical check or pay online.”
“Then there are various other people who are involved in Fyre one that I’m paying back on a monthly basis as well.”
The numbers would make anyone dizzy, but it seems the 32-year-old has maintained a positive outlook on his crushing debt.
“It’s all just numbers at this point,” McFarland said with a shrug.
He said that in conjunction with his eye on Fyre Fest 2 helping him pay his seemingly insurmountable dues, he also lives a much more financially leaner life these days.
“I joked a few months ago that my personal burn rate is as low as it’s been since I was 15 years old. I definitely don’t live the way I used to, and there’s a huge hill to climb.
“That said Fyre is about having fun. So I still go out and do fun things, whether it’s helicopter jumps or underwater concerts or concerts on runways, I find ways to make it all work, but doing it in a way that’s more sustainable that will allow me to pay everybody back which is the most important thing,” he said.
The first Fyre Fest was one of, if not the biggest, event disasters in history – one which some festival-goers forked over tens of thousands of dollars to attend.
The calamity was further amplified by social media and fueled by a pack of burned influencers who stepped foot onto the island of Great Exuma and had expected an epic party for the ages and got anything but.
Instead of luxury villas, attendees were housed in emergency FEMA tents; instead of world-class cuisine, they were served cold cheese sandwiches in foam containers.
Anyone who saw the unfolding of the first Fyre Festival via social media, news articles, and eventually two competing documentaries in 2019, got to witness what an absolute catastrophe the event was, but McFarland has his reasons for going for the reboot.
“This is the most tangible way to repay the $26 million that I owe, and having real partners gives an opportunity in the next five to seven years, to actually pay back that $26 million,” he said.
“And unfortunately, no one’s offering me $26 million to work somewhere else,” McFarland added with a smile.
The convict went on to say he is taking full advantage of his notoriety.
“We are literally the most talked about music festival in the world. We’ve had three times as many mentioned this Coachella, which is in second place and there’s a huge drop-off after that.
“It’s an incredible opportunity to steer that ship into the storm and embrace everything that’s happened and if Fyre two goes well, the brand recognition of Fyre as a media company, as a travel company as an entertainment brand is massive and can make right a lot of the wrongs they did before.”
‘STEERING INTO THE STORM’
McFarland has maintained an interesting perspective on his post-prison plans.
The Fyre Fest Fraundester is fully embracing storm similes, as they pertain to his first, rain-drenched festival fiasco, and possibly even the raining debt he is facing.
Even in Fyre 1 was perfect and everything it was sold as, I still would have gone to jail.
Billy McFarland
“Right now it’s just me, trying to create controversy and I think my job is to be this little airplane flying through a storm and trying to tell you that we’re not sure if we’re going to crash or land,” he said.
“I feel like the more we can embrace that hurricane, the more people are going to want to get a front-row seat and be there as it happens, and just be part of this three-day weekend and cultural moment where the outcome is just not clear.”
The 32-year-old kept most of the details of FF2 tightly held, but he did claim he has partner overseeing the brunt of the operations.
“There’s an operating partner, a company that acquired a 51% stake in Fyre. So they’re in charge, they’re running the show, and there are various talent partners, catering partners, and transportation partners.
“Then there is me and my Fyre team, which is in charge of the marketing and the stunts whether it’s jumping from a helicopter or lobster diving. We are there to make Fyre, Fyre.”
The hardest thing for McFarland, he said, was trying to get anyone to take his calls after prison.
“It was really hard to find the right partners to trust me and it took a year after getting out of jail before anyone would answer my phone calls – they would think everything is ridiculous.
“But now I have a really really solid team and there is someone who’s actually in charge at the festival.”
While he is well aware of the absolute debacle of an event that Fyre was, he said one thing people don’t realize is that he did time behind bars not for the failed event itself.
“The biggest mischaracterization was that the crime was the event itself.
“Even in Fyre 1 was perfect and everything it was sold as, I still would have gone to jail.
“My crime was misleading investors to try to raise the money that I thought I needed for the festival,” he explained.
“For Fyre 1, we legitimately tried super hard to make it work, but it was decisions I made behind the scenes that were immoral and wrong so this time around- different story- we are working with real people, and giving ourselves plenty of time, a year as opposed to a handful of months this time around,” he said.
FF2, WHAT TO EXPECT?
While McFarland seems optimistic about his renewed Fyre Fest endeavor, right now it’s anyone’s guess what guests will get for their approximately $3,500 ticket price.
The ex-con has only given a general vicinity of the event — somewhere in the Caribean Sea — and that it will take place in just under a year’s time from publication.
In the meantime, he joked he’s open to hosting the shindig in the Bermuda Triangle, if his partners allow him to do it.
Splash NewsFyre Festival was one of the biggest event disasters – if not the biggest, propelled by social media and a pack of angry stranded influencers[/caption]
Splash NewsBilly did four years in jail for defrauding investors — the failed event wasn’t even the crime[/caption] Published: [#item_custom_pubDate]
