It’s been nearly two years since scammer Billy McFarland and rapper Ja Rule teamed up to throw Fyre Festival, quite possibly the most infamous “music festival” of all time. And now, the influencers and musicians who helped promote it are being sued.
In a court document obtained by E! News, Gregory Messer, a trustee of the failed music event, is suing Kendall Jenner, Emily Ratajkowski, Blink-182, and talent agencies in hopes to recover the money they were paid to promote or perform at the event.
The suit is seeking $500,000 from Blink-182, which is the amount the band was paid to headline the festival. It is also seeking $275,000 from Jenner and $300,000 from Ratajkowski for promoting the festival.
Jenner allegedly posted about the event on social media without indicating that she was paid to do so. This action “intentionally led certain members of the public and ticket purchasers to believe” that Kanye West and other members of GOOD Music would attend the event.
“This conduct demonstrates a clear lack of good faith on Jenner’s part,” the lawsuit reads.
Other agencies, such as Creative Artists Agency, International Creative Management, and Nue Agency were allegedly paid substantial funds for the performances of Blink-182, Migos, Lil Yachty, Rae Sremmurd, Pusha T, Desiigner, and Tyga, among others. The talent agencies are being asked to pay up a combined total of nearly $2 million.
Fyre Festival made headlines in 2017 after hundreds of people paid thousands of dollars for a luxury experience that was far from luxurious. By the time people had arrived at the festival, most of the performers had already dropped out and many of the influencers who promoted the event never showed up. The promise of a luxury experience could be summed up in a single viral post, showing a slice of cheese on a piece of bread.
The “catering” (which cost extra) was a slice of untoasted bread, two slices prepackaged cheese, and a side salad. pic.twitter.com/BoKxWAMI5i
— Iron Spike (@Iron_Spike) April 28, 2017
McFarland, who is currently serving a 6-year sentence for wire fraud, apologized for the failed event during his sentencing in 2018.
“I am incredibly sorry for my collective actions and will right the wrongs I have delivered to my family, friends, partners, associates and, you, the general public,” he said at the time. “I’ve always sought—and dreamed—to accomplish incredible things by pushing the envelope to deliver for a common good, but I made many wrong and immature decisions along the way and I caused agony. As a result, I’ve lived every day in prison with pain, and I will continue to do so until I am able to make up for some of this harm through work and actions that society finds respectable.”
READ MORE:
- Andy King reacts to all the ‘Fyre’ Netflix doc memes about him
- How to watch the Fyre Fest docs for free
- A redditor planted an Easter egg in Hulu’s Fyre Fest doc
H/T Radar Online
