Ja Rule says he is “deeply sorry” for those stranded at the Fyre Festival, in half a–ed apology.
The “gourmet cuisine” this weekend was included in the ticket cost. We are being fed salads and ham and cheese sandwiches out of this tent pic.twitter.com/MRv7U0RiyM
— dylan (@DylanACOP) April 28, 2017
In case you’re playing catch-up, hundreds of festivalgoers shelled out $1,000 to $250,000 for tickets to the event in Great Exuma, Bahamas, with the promise of gourmet food and accommodations and epic performances. However, music lovers were stranded on the private island. According to a variety of complaints lobbed via Twitter, attendees arrived at to an unfinished site, underwhelming accommodations and a lack of food and proper staffing.
As for the performers, closing headliner, Blink-182, canceled its performance on Thursday, citing subpar production standards. Migos and Major Lazer were also expected to perform, yet were a no-show.
— Ja Rule (@Ruleyork) April 28, 2017
Following the backlash, Ja Rule, an early backer of the “luxury” festival took to Twitter, where he expressed his concern — sort of. “We are working right now on getting everyone out of the island SAFE that is my immediate concern,” he wrote, via Twitter, on Friday, April 28, claiming that the event was “not a scam.” “I don’t know how everything went so left but I’m working to make it right by making sure everyone is refunded.”
This sums up Fyre Festival. #fyre #fyrefestival #fyrefest pic.twitter.com/x4xcFBL8Yg
— William N. Finley IV (@WNFIV) April 28, 2017
Meanwhile, festival organizers announced early on Friday morning that the three-day, two-weekend event was being postponed indefinitely, and guests were being sent home. “Due to circumstances out of our control, the physical infrastructure was not in place on time and we are unable to fulfill on that vision safely and enjoyably for our guests,” Fyre organizers said in a statement. “The festival is being postponed until we can further assess if and when we are able to create the high-quality experience we envisioned.”
Officials with the Bahamian Ministry of Tourism, however, pointed the finger at Fyre’s organizers for the major mishap. “The event organizers assured us that all measures were taken to ensure a safe and successful event but clearly they did not have the capacity to execute an event of this scale,” the statement reads. “A team of Ministry of Tourism representatives is on the island to assist with the organization of a safe return of all Fyre Festival visitors. It is our hope that the Fyre Festival visitors would consider returning to the Islands of The Bahamas in the future to truly experience all of our beauty.”
Still, Fyre Festival co-founder, Billy McFarland, 25, told Rolling Stone that he and the organizers (including Ja) realized the morning of the festival that, “Wow, we can’t do this.”
“We were a little naïve in thinking for the first time we could do this ourselves,” McFarland said, adding that festivalgoers will be refunded. “Next year, we will definitely start earlier. The reality is, we weren’t experienced enough to keep up.”
