NJ Man Joins Legal Fight Against Fyre Festival Organizers

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A New Jersey man has filed the latest proposed class action lawsuit against the organizers of the spectacularly down-in-flames Fyre Festival.

The what now?

The 18-page proposed class action lawsuit against defendants Fyre Media, Inc., Fyre Festival LLC and co-founders Ja Rule (Jeffrey Atkins) and Billy McFarland alleges in no uncertain language that the parties knowingly defrauded thousands of already paid customers and knew “well in advance” that the event was “severely under-equipped and could not meet the expectations of the festival attendees.”

The complaint argues that under federal and New Jersey laws, proposed class members are entitled to refunds for money spent on ticket packages, travel to Miami, and lodging expenses “as a result of being stranded.”

Bummer. Was it going to be fun?

Set to take place on an island in the Exumas, Bahamas, Fyre Festival was supposed to be a two-weekend uber-exclusive, “once-in-a-lifetime” music and art festival featuring scheduled performances from the likes of Blink 182, Major Lazer, Migos, and Lil Yachty. The lawsuit notes lower-tiered ticket packages started at roughly $1,100 per person—a price the case claims “increased to several thousands of dollars” as the event drew near—with higher-end ticket options reportedly ranging from $12,499 to almost $50,000 per person.

Ostensibly included in all ticket packages, regardless of price, were complimentary roundtrip flights between Miami and the remote island, tickets for the festival, and lodging. As an up-sell, the lawsuit continues, attendees could “amplify” their experience by purchasing add-ons and other VIP events in addition to their original ticket.

So that’s what my nephew was talking about on social media, then?

Leading up to the event, the lawsuit notes “Fyre Festival was promoted heavily on the internet and through social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.” To boost its viral marketing efforts, the defendants enlisted help from “Instagram influencers” such as former Pepsi brand ambassador Kendall Jenner, Bella Hadid, and others.

And the event went off without a hitch?

We’ll let the lawsuit take it from here (emphasis ours):

“Fyre Festival attendees began to arrive on the remote island on the eve of Fyre Festival on Thursday, April 27, 2017. Festival attendees expected a luxury experience; however, they instead encountered the opposite. The island woefully lacked basic infrastructure such as fresh, water, plumbing and lodging. As a result, on Friday, April 29, 2017, the Fyre Festival organizers removed all content from FyreFestival.com and posted a message stating the following:

Fyre Festival set out to provide a once-in-a-lifetime musical experience on the Islands off the Exumas.

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. At this time, we are working tirelessly to get flights scheduled and get everyone off of Great Exuma and home safely as quickly as we can. We ask that guests currently on-island do not make their own arrangements to get to the airport as we are coordinating those plans. We are working to place everyone on complimentary charters back to Miami today; this process has commenced and the safety and comfort of our guests is our top priority.

The festival is being postponed until we can further assess if and when we are able to create the high-quality experience we envisioned.

We ask for everyone’s patience and cooperation during this difficult time as we work as quickly and safely as we can to remedy this unforeseeable situation. We will continue to provide regular updates via email to our guests and via our official social media channels as they become available.The Fyre Festival Team

Wow.

It doesn’t end there. In addition to alleging the defendants knew full well Fyre Festival would flop ferociously, the lawsuit contends contractors hired by the parties “refused to work” because they had not received payment. Even further, musical acts were allegedly warned in advance by the defendants not to come to Fyre Festival.

New developments seeming to be popping up daily in the ongoing Fyre Festival saga. To read more about two otherlawsuits filed earlier this week against the festival’s backers, RollingStone.com has you covered [UPDATE: As this post was being published, Rolling Stone published a report of yet another class action, this time out of New York, against Fyre Festival's organizers]. We’ll keep you updated with the latest.

The full complaint can be read below.