FAILED FESTIVLAS

Hit songs from top artists, Insta-worthy pictures and dancing amongst thousands of people are some perks to attending a music festival. Although most music festivals are a blast, they’re vulnerable to failures. In fact, it isn’t rare that some festivals end up in chaos, even leading to the deaths of innocent people. One infamous case of a failed festival is the Fyre Festival of 2017. Advertised as an “immersive music festival” on a private beach in the Bahamas, attendees were promised private villages, gourmet food and a lineup consisting of famous rappers. It was also promoted by influencers like Bella Hadid and Kendall Jenner. Roughly 5,000 people bought tickets, ranging anywhere from $1,200 to $25,000. However, upon arrival, attendees found no sign of villas nor gourmet food and were left stranded. Billy McFarland, the organizer of the event, turned out to be the backbone of the ridiculous scam. With only eight weeks to plan, his focus was on promotion rather than setting up the venue or paying the artists. The festival was immediately canceled, and only some were able to get a refund through their own credit card company. Huge damage was done to investors, attendees and workers on the island that were promised to be paid after the festival. Later on, people filed a million-dollar class action lawsuit and McFarland was eventually sentenced to six years in prison. All other contributors such as rapper Ja Rule, the co-organizer of the event and the influencers all claimed that they had nothing to do with the fraud. Only some of them spoke out on social media, and Kendall Jenner paid a $90,000 settlement out of the $275,000 she initially received. Another tragedy happened recently at the Astroworld Festival in 2021, an annual event held by rapper Travis Scott in Houston. Problems arose immediately when the crowd of 50,000 rushed towards the stage causing a stampede. Although Scott stopped the show a few times to aid passed-out attendees, he was unaware of the severity of the bigger crowd in the back. Despite at least hundreds of people getting injured, the show went on for the planned time. Video footage of people dancing on ambulances was shared online, clearly showing the chaotic situation. The night resulted in the deaths of 10 people, including a nine-year-old boy. Despite rumors that the main cause of death was an intoxicating substance, it was revealed that all but one victim’s only found cause of death was compression asphyxia, where breathing is cut off due to a strong external force. After canceling the festival, Travis Scott spoke out on his Instagram expressing how devastated he was, and he eventually refunded everyone who attended and offered to pay for the funerals of the victims, which most refused. No amount of money could bring back the lives lost at the tragic scene. Festivals are a great way for people to release stress and connect with other people, but failed festivals from the past clearly show their darker side and how disastrous it can get, even leading to death. In festivals with magnitudes like these, it is important that all contributors are more precautious and plan accordingly to prevent any more mishaps in the future.

Failed Festivals

Seojean Ahn, staff writer