Ja Rule Says Fyre Festival 'Not A Scam' Amid Backlash: 'I Truly Apologize As This Is Not My Fault'
"I'm heartbroken at this moment," the rapper wrote about the backlash he received on his Fyre Festival. "My partners and I wanted this to be an amazing event."
This article originally appeared on People.
Though Ja Rule’s Fyre Festival has been named a “complete distaster” by attendees, he insists the “luxury concert” was not a scam.
The inaugural event, which the rapper co-created with business partner Billy McFarland, was postponed indefinitely after concert-goers traveling to the Exuma islands of the Bahamas, were met with complete disorganization and sub-standard living conditions that were far from ready.
“We are working right now on getting everyone of [sic] the island SAFE that is my immediate concern,” he wrote in a tweet on Friday. “I will make a statement soon I’m heartbroken at this moment my partners and I wanted this to be an amazing event it was NOT A SCAM as everyone is reporting I don’t know how everything went so left but I’m working to make it right by making sure everyone is refunded.”
He continued: “I truly apologize as this is NOT MY FAULT… but I’m taking responsibility I’m deeply sorry to everyone who was inconvenienced by this…”
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Tickets for the event ranged from $4,000 to upwards of $250,000, and guests were promised a flight from Miami and performances by Blink 182, Rae Sremmurd, Skepta to G.O.O.D. Music acts Designer, Tyga, and Pusha T.
Late Friday morning, festival organizers postponed the entire event indefinitely.
“Fyre Festival set out to provide a once-in-a-lifetime musical experience on the islands of Exuma. Due to circumstances beyond our control, we must postpone this experience,” the event organizers said in a statement. “We are working tirelessly to ensure each guest leaves the island safely and ask for everyone’s patience and cooperation as we continue to provide ongoing updates via email and our official social media channels as they become available, including refund information.”
The Bahamas Ministry of Tourism, who were not an official sponsor of the event, issued a statement on Friday saying they’re “extremely disappointed with the way the events unfolded” and apologizing to “all who traveled to our country for this event.”
This isn’t the first poorly executed business venture from Ja Rule’s business partner, McFarland. The tech entrepreneur previously founded Magnises, an “elite credit” card that had a $250 annual fee for discounted access to exclusive events — but customers claim that the card never delivered on the perks it was advertising.
