Living like movie stars. Partying like rock stars. Fucking like porn stars. Managing money like NFL stars.
He spent $250,000 on a single Instagram post from Kim Kardashian’s half-sister Kendall Jenner and laid out hundreds of thousands more on lesser-name “influencers,” none of whom were paid less than $20,000, one person familiar with the payments said.
Reminds me of: "I spent a lot of money on booze, birds and fast cars. The rest I just squandered" - George Best
Some generic inside baseball on the risk management side of these events https://www.law360.com/insurance/ar...etter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=insurance Spoiler April 27, 2017, was scheduled to be the first day of the Fyre Festival. Guests were promised that the island of Great Exuma would be converted into an extravagant two weekends of music, “first-class culinary experiences and a luxury atmosphere.” Supermodels, artists and celebrity influencers plastered social media with their excitement about the event and their intent to attend. However, it was promptly and widely reported that the festival lacked basic necessities such as food, water, shelter and medical care, and certainly did not provide the luxury accommodations promised for which attendees paid between $1,000 and $125,000. Guests reported fighting for mattresses inside tents used for disaster relief and cheese sandwiches being the closest thing to "cuisine." Within days, a class action lawsuit was filed claiming $100 million in damages and alleging that the entire production was a "scam." The experience — one likened to "The Hunger Games" — only worsened for both attendees and organizers after reports that guests could not board flights off the island and were then forbidden from leaving the airport. Event Cancellation Insurance Although it is too early to measure the economic fallout from this event, it will certainly be significant. Promoters and sponsors surely incurred considerable out-of-pocket expenditures organizing, advertising and promoting the event. Equally likely is that promoters, sponsors and local businesses on the island will report significant losses in projected revenue and profits. This event and the negative attention it continues to receive is the most recent reminder of the significant economic risks posed by live events. To combat these risks, many insureds with a financial stake in such events — including promoters, advertisers, broadcasting organizations, venues, teams, leagues and concessionaires — rely on event cancellation insurance. This important risk management tool can protect an insured’s bottom line against the financial losses that accompany event cancellations and postponements, and insureds should take steps to familiarize themselves with the scope of coverage provided by their event cancellation policies. Event cancellation coverage insures against loss arising out of the cancellation, interruption or postponement of a covered event, so long as the source of the cancellation or postponement is covered under the insured’s policy. Coverage is potentially available for cancellations and postponements stemming from a wide variety of perils, including earthquakes, floods, fires, power failure, damage to the leased or rented venue, and problems associated with public transportation or roads leading to the venue. See, e.g., HDMG Entertainment LLC v. Certain Underwriters at Lloyd's of London, 2017 WL 367967 (D.S.C. Jan. 25, 2017) (cancellation of the Swamp Fox Biker Bash); MediaTec Pub. Inc. v. Lexington Insurance Co., 2011 WL 841245 (N.D. Ill. Mar. 8, 2011) (alleging lost revenue from two conferences due to 2008 financial crisis); New Orleans Dental Ass'n Inc. v. North American Insurance Co., 2007 WL 1302552 (E.D. La. May 3, 2007) (cancellation of annual meeting due to Hurricane Katrina). However, event cancellation policies are generally nonstandard, meaning that terms and conditions vary widely from policy to policy. An insured must therefore carefully review its policy to determine the scope of coverage provided. The forms of financial loss covered under an event cancellation policy will likewise depend on the particular terms of the insured’s policy. Policies will frequently cover the out-of-pocket costs incurred by the insured prior to the cancellation, interruption or postponement of the event. Coverage might also be available for any contractual guarantees that the insured is obligated to pay. Lost profits and revenues may also be covered under an event cancellation policy, provided of course that the insured can establish with reasonable certainty the amount of the loss. This coverage could apply to, among other things, lost advertising or broadcasting revenue, lost ticket sales, or amounts paid to reimburse individuals who had already purchased tickets. Depending on the particular terms of the event cancellation policy at issue, the costs associated with rescheduling a postponed or interrupted event could potentially be covered as well. For instance, coverage might be available for the costs of organizing and marketing the rescheduled event, and the same is potentially true of costs incurred to transfer equipment and supplies to a new venue. An insured may also be able to recover the cost of renting or leasing a new venue for the rescheduled event. Like all forms of insurance, event cancellation policies will typically contain a number of exclusions designed to limit coverage. For instance, cancellations or postponements stemming from weak ticket sales or lack of advertising interest are generally not covered, unless the lack of sales or advertising interest can be attributed to an otherwise covered cause. The same is generally true of canceled or postponed events resulting from a lack of funding. Furthermore, these policies may have exclusions for cancellations and postponements resulting from labor strikes or lockouts. Because they are often nonstandard, many common exclusions can be reworded or eliminated, sometimes without an additional premium. For instance, although some event cancellation policies contain exclusions for weather-related cancellations and postponements, such exclusions are commonly absent from event cancellation policies and can often be narrowed or eliminated. Consequently, an insured should carefully examine the proposed coverage and, if necessary, explore the possibility of negotiating for more favorable terms or purchasing supplemental coverages. Event cancellation policies also typically require the insured to take all reasonably practical steps to minimize (or mitigate) financial losses resulting from the cancellation, postponement or interruption of a covered event. This requirement may lead an insured to reschedule a postponed or interrupted event rather than cancel it altogether. From a practical standpoint, contractual obligations may effectively require an insured to reschedule. Even absent such obligations, it may still make financial sense to reschedule an event — even one that is not likely to net the insured substantial profits. Insureds should consult with the insurer prior to rescheduling a covered event, if only to confirm that the insurer supports the decision to reschedule. Because the mitigation requirement is meant to minimize an insured’s losses (as well as the amounts paid out by the event cancellation insurer), an insured should be able to recover reasonable mitigation costs incurred in connection with a rescheduled event. For example, expenses associated with the planning, marketing and organization of the rescheduled event might be viewed as covered costs of mitigation. An insured should include these mitigation costs in its claim for coverage under an event cancellation policy. Of course, the mitigation requirement is not designed to force an insured to reschedule an event where doing so will only add to the insured’s loss, nor should it obligate an insured to reschedule an event where doing so is neither practical nor commercially reasonable. For instance, in the case of the canceled New York City Marathon in 2012, weather conditions and other scheduled events in the area precluded any theoretical attempts and desire to reschedule that event. As soon as it becomes clear that a scheduled event might be canceled, postponed or otherwise interrupted, an insured should carefully review its policy and strive to satisfy all terms and conditions. In particular, insureds should pay close attention to timing-related policy terms. Most event cancellation policies will require that the insured provide notice of a loss within a specified timeframe — sometimes as little as 30 days (or even less) following the loss. Because failure to comply with these notice requirements can complicate the pursuit of coverage, insureds should make every effort to provide formal notice within the required timeframe. This is true even if a particular cancellation or postponement receives significant media attention, as is certainly the case with the Fyre Festival. Many event cancellation policies will also require that the insured submit a detailed “proof of loss” within some specified timeframe following the loss. This gives the insured the opportunity to document its claim and describe the losses. Because an insured’s claimed lost profits are generally judged against profits earned for prior events, an insured may need to turn over historical financial records to support its claim. Thus, insureds should maintain detailed and comprehensive records for all events. The insured should also be aware of timing-related limitations concerning the right to initiate litigation against the insurer. The timeframe in which an insured can file suit may be dictated by the express terms of the policy, or by statute or regulation. Regardless, insureds should be mindful of the governing timeframe to ensure that its rights to pursue coverage is preserved. Finally, when making a claim for coverage following an event’s cancellation or postponement, insureds should not make any assumptions about what is covered under their policies. As noted above, the scope of coverage provided by event cancellation policies can vary widely, so insureds should carefully review their policies prior to making a claim to ensure that they frame their claim in a way that maximizes recovery and takes full advantage of the coverage provided. Crisis Management Insurance Attendees of the Fyre Festival specifically and attendees of festival/destination events generally rely on the promises an assurances advertised before investing the time and resources necessary to attend. Whether it be the artists scheduled to perform, the celebrity guests and/or a first-class experience, the festival and entertainment industry relies on the public perception that these events will deliver on their often unique promises (for which a premium is typically paid). As much as event organizers want to avoid legal battles stemming from a past event, they surely need to avoid a public relations disaster going forward. See, e.g., Cytosol Laboratories Inc. v. Federal Insurance Co., 536 F. Supp. 2d 80 (D. Mass. 2008) (involving product recall claim by pharmaceutical manufacturer). All companies and organizations must be zealous about protecting their public image, both before and after a crisis. Crisis management insurance provides the financial flexibility to respond appropriately to a public relations issue. It generally obligates the insurer to advance the costs associated with responding to an event such as a man-made disaster or contamination event. This coverage is available regardless of fault and generally includes those occurrences that the insured believes will result in damages if crisis management services are not utilized (and any related negative media coverage). Crisis management services are those performed by a crisis management firm, including advising the insured on how to minimize potential harm, and maintain or restore public confidence in the insured. The policy also covers medical and funeral expenses, psychological counseling, travel and temporary living expenses, expenses to secure the scene and any other expenses preapproved by the insurer. The future success of the Fyre Festival may depend on how quickly the public forgets the images of tent cities and cheese sandwiches. As with any type of insurance, the scope of this coverage depends on the terms of the particular policy. Insureds should review their policies — both when purchasing and making a claim. Finally, keep the following tips in mind to get the most out of your crisis management coverage: The policy must meet your needs so communicate expectations to your broker. Negotiate a broad definition of “crisis.” Since the concept of “crisis” is subjective, the policy should be tailored to define that term broadly enough to capture any event that may insured believes may damage its reputation. In addition, the insurer may attempt to limit or pre-select the crisis management and/or public relations firms available to the insured. If the insured also has a preferred firm or representative, it should be communicated to the insurer before the coverage is purchased. When making a claim for coverage, strive to satisfy all conditions in your policy. Carefully assess all policy conditions-particularly timing-related conditions that may purport to impose deadlines on when your company must give notice of a claim, submit a proof of loss, or initiate litigation against the insurer. Also be aware of conditions requiring certain individuals to become aware of the coverage-triggering occurrence that gives rise to the crisis event.
http://www.star-telegram.com/entertainment/music/article148083079.html Nothing worth a shit. Just a pic of an attendee that has a tight bod Spoiler
https://news.vice.com/story/audio-f...yees-nobodys-getting-paid?utm_source=vicefbus Spoiler On Friday, Billy McFarland, the 25-year-old founder of the disastrous Fyre Festival, told his shell-shocked employees that their paychecks covering the past two weeks would not be coming. Nor would he be firing them, a prerequisite for unemployment benefits in most states. Instead, McFarland offered to allow his dozen-or-so employees to stay on in unpaid roles, where they could work to grow the business to a place where they might get paid again. The meeting, audio of which was obtained by VICE News, wrapped up weeks of uncertainty for the employees of Fyre Media, the company behind Fyre Festival, whose primary job had been building a celebrity and talent booking app the festival was intended to promote. Rapper and Fyre Media co-founder Ja Rule was on the grim conference call, but his role was that of a listener. “I’m on the phone but I can barely hear you all because of this fucking hum,” Ja Rule said. McFarland kicked off the meeting by cutting to the chase: nobody would be getting paid, but they were free to keep working regardless. “After conferring with our counsel and all financial people, unfortunately we are not able to proceed with payroll,” McFarland said. “We’re not firing anyone, we’re just letting you know that there will be no payroll in the short term.” “I’m on the phone but I can barely hear you all because of this fucking hum” – Ja Rule The festival imploded in a spectacular fashion at the end of April when thousands of ticket holders arrived in the Bahamas for the luxury vacation they had been promised by glitzy marketing materials and models who had been paid to promote the event. But instead of high-end lodges and villas, they found wet mattresses, portapotties and the type of tents used by FEMA for disaster relief efforts. Some attendees who attempted to leave on their own were locked in an airport overnight with no access to food or water. “There will be no payroll in the short term” – Billy McFarland Since then, Fyre Media has been the target of at least seven lawsuits, including one class-action seeking $100 million in damages. Another investor, EHL Funding, filed suit Thursday alleging the company had defaulted on a $3 million loan issued April 10. Others involved in the festival, including investors and models like Kendall Jenner, Bella Hadid, and Hailey Baldwin, who promoted the event but did not disclose they were being paid, have been referenced in separate suits. McFarland kicked off the call ominously, by saying everyone should have received an emailed “preservation notice” warning them not to delete or remove any files related to several multimillion-dollar lawsuits filed against the company in the past month. “I understand this is not an ideal situation for everybody” – Billy McFarland Nevertheless, McFarland urged those who still believed in the idea of the company to stick around and help build the talent booking service without pay. “I understand that this is not an ideal situation for everybody, and this will likely cause a lot of you to resign, which we totally get and understand,” he said. “That said, if you want to stick with us, we’d love to have you and we’d love to work together and hunker down and get back to a place where everything resumes to business as usual as usual.” VICE News made numerous attempts to contact McFarland, but he did not return messages seeking comment. “We have not closed a Series A round, and that’s as much as I can say” – Billy McFarland McFarland responded to accusations that he had misled his employees into believing Comcast had invested money when it had not. Bloomberg reportedthat Comcast had a term sheet in March to invest $10.5 million in Fyre Media, valuing the company at about $100 million. “We have not closed a Series A round, and that’s as much as I can say,” McFarland said on the call, prompting several employees to interject that he had initially claimed otherwise. During the call, employees asked why they weren’t being fired so they could collect unemployment benefits. “If that impacts you, you can email me,” he McFarland said. “Do you have any record of us working for Fyre?” – Fyre employee One employee, who had been paid in cash, asked if there was any record of her being an employee at all. Payroll in the office abruptly stopped last October, after which time employees were paid by wire transfer or in cash, a former employee said. McFarland promised to address the pay stub issue in an email “today,” but another former employee says the email was never sent. Repeatedly referring to future paychecks as “obligations,” McFarland said that although the company would not be able to fulfill those “obligations” going forward, he was committed to growing the booking platform for celebrity talent which Fyre Media was founded around. “Should we be concerned about the FBI, Billy?” – Fyre employee Ominously, one employee said she heard another had been contacted by the FBI and wondered what she should do if she was called. “Should we be concerned about the FBI, Billy?” another asked. “That’s really more of an individual thing,” McFarland said, before offering to connect anyone contacted by the FBI to Fyre Media’s lawyers. “That’s really more of an individual thing” – Billy McFarland The FBI declined to say whether it had opened an investigation into Fyre Media. Many of the Fyre Media employees hired to build the platform, including a team in Portland, were not involved in the festival or its planning. They were preparing to launch the app when the festival imploded April 27. Instead, most of the remaining Fyre Media employees quit en masse over the weekend and on Monday. Soon after, their access to their company email was shut off.
"McFarland kicked off the meeting by cutting to the chase: nobody would be getting paid, but they were free to keep working regardless."
I can't imagine there is a state that would allow an employer to keep you on the payroll and not work you. Even in a shitty state like SC we wouldn't allow that and you would be eligible for UI benefits.
“Should we be concerned about the FBI, Billy?” – Fyre employee Ominously, one employee said she heard another had been contacted by the FBI and wondered what she should do if she was called. “Should we be concerned about the FBI, Billy?” another asked. “That’s really more of an individual thing,” McFarland said, before offering to connect anyone contacted by the FBI to Fyre Media’s lawyers. Yes.
This played out like I would imagine me and a few buddies in high school getting high and deciding to throw a music festival. The twist was them incredibly falling into investors.
I've given a group of college students an event-planning assignment before and this is essentially what they come up with. "Chips?"
So I just spent a while talking to my buddy about this. His family is abundantly wealthy and own a good amount of property down in the Bahamas and actually sued McFarland in the Bahamas for trespassing and some other stuff for filming parts of the promo video on their property. Some bullets from our talk: - McFarland sent out an investment deck for this idea about a year ago, and it came across my friend's desk. He said anyone that knew anything about the Bahamas scoffed at the thought of this being pulled off in a year's time (realistically 3 years would have been pushing it) due to the lack of infrastructure and logistical issues. - He told anyone that would listen that this was a horrible idea and not to invest. - McFarland enlisted the help of a guy in the Bahamas that basically told him he could take care of all of the bureaucratic issues with the Bahamian government and could cut through all of the red tape. Took a bunch of McFarland's money up front, and then bailed. Dude was a con man, and had actually gotten over on my buddy's family about some shit about five years ago. - McF & Co. started selling tickets without putting in any of their own money into the venture (basically tried to use ticket sales to fund the whole project). - Blew roughly 25% of their budget on the youtube ad (plus what they spent on the Kendall Jenner IG promo). - Shortly after this the judge (or magistrate or whatever it would be down there) that was in charge of issuing the venue permit for island they wanted to host the event on (Exumas) decided they would not issue them the permit. This was one of the critical things that the con man said he would take care of. - This is where they should have folded and gotten out. - Instead they decide to push on, and look for a new location, settling at the site of an abandoned (and dilapidated) Sandals resort. No running water. Did nothing to notify any ticket purchasers that there was a venue change. - I guess the guys either didn't know or didn't care that the Bahamas uses duties as a primary source of funding for the government. So everything, all the way down to toilet paper, was going to have to be flown in (it's not like there are Costcos close), and all of this stuff would have a duty placed on it before the government will release it. - As its getting closer to show time (< 2 months), stuff starts showing up in port for the festival, but McF & Co. don't have the cash to pay the duties for the items. This includes the porta-potties mentioned in the article. So all of this stuff winds up being seized by the Bahamian government. - The subsequent shit show ensued.
Some of this shit is so basic. I mean, everyone who has ever been to the bahamas knows that everything is expensive because of the duties. My god these people are dumber and dumber every minute
I don't know but those portapotties are still the grossest thing I've ever seen in my life by day 3. 3 days of drugged up grilled cheese hippy shit in 95 degree weather crowning over the toilet seat. That was a god damn nightmare.
It really is impressive just how badly this was run. They had never run a festival before correct? Would be like me wanting to get into properly development and starting with a skyscraper in NYC. A festival on an island with no access to basic human needs. Sounds like a great first one to work out the kinks
Really buried the lede that Ja is currently in possession of a machine that would allow him to return to the early 2000s.
One of my closest friends and former roommates works for a booking company in Austin and they recently put on a festival. The amount of work that goes into one of those things in a major city with access to EVERYTHING is astonishing. The idea of doing one in a place like that with zero expertise or experience is insane. When I asked him about Fyre Fest, my buddy told me that it would have been tough for C3 or LiveNation to pull that event off at that scale with what they promised and even those kinds of enterprises probably couldn't have delivered in that timeframe. They might as well have decided to have their festival on the moon.
Always down to help TMB brethren out when possible. Let me know when theres a rap or electronic show you really wanna go to and ill see what I can do. Anything put on by ScoreMore