The co-organiser of Fyre Festival has finally been arrested

Billy McFarland might be facing jail time

Billy McFarland, the man behind the disastorous Fyre Festival, has been arrested in New York – charged with scheming to defraud investors in his company, Fyre Media.

Fyre Festival was supposed to be a luxury muisc event in the Bahamas but was eventually dubbed the "Hunger Games for rich people".

In an almighty shitshow, ticket holders who had paid thousands of pounds found themselves stranded on the island with little access to food and water, living in post-apocalyptic looking soggy tents.

The brainchild of McFarland and rapper Ja Rule (who has not been arrested), ticket holders were sold on the promise of “VIP-configured” jets, “geodesic” lodging, plus performances from bands including Blink 182.

The festival was even supported by models like Bella Hadid and Emily Ratajkowski, who frolicked in sunshine-filled promotional photos.

On social media, people are gleefully enjoying news of McFarland's arrest.

Acting US Attorney Joon Kim said McFarland presented fake documents to encourage investors to put more than $1 million into his company and the failed festival.

He said: "McFarland promised a 'life changing' music festival but in actuality delivered a disaster... Thanks to the investigative efforts of the FBI, McFarland will now have to answer for his crimes."

The FBI's William F. Sweeney Jr. added: "McFarland truly put on a show, misrepresenting the financial status of his businesses in order to rake in lucrative investment deals. In the end, the very public failure of the Fyre Festival signaled that something just wasn't right."

Despite this, it looks like the memory of the festival will reach cult status. A few weeks ago it was revealed up that people were selling their Fyre merchandise on Ebay.

Read Next
Head to Head‘Rap saved my life’: A hazy conversation with MIKE and Earl Sweatshirt

Two of hip hop’s brightest minds go toke-to-toke on their undeniable similarities, their problem with ‘drumless rap’, and why you can never tire of your passion

Read Now

Lists7 essential albums by the Soulquarians

In light of D’Angelo’s passing, we look at the best albums from the collective, whose members included J Dilla, Questlove and Erykah Badu

Read Now

FeatureIs AI really the future of music?

With AI-generated ‘musicians’ climbing the charts and signing multi-million dollar record deals, is there any hope for real, human artists?

Read Now

Life & CultureHow do you stand out online? We asked two Instagram Rings judges

Last week, the app launched Rings, a new award for 25 creators who will receive an exclusive gold ring around their profile

Read Now