British singer Jessie J has revealed that she had been recently diagnosed with “early breast cancer.”
The musician (born Jessica Cornish) shared the health update on social media on Tuesday (June 3), telling her followers that the diagnosis came shortly before the release of recent single “No Secrets” in April. “I’m highlighting the word ‘early,’” she explained. “Cancer sucks in any form but I’m holding on to the word ‘early.’”
As she continued, she revealed that she’s been “in and out of tests” in the time since, but has decided to share her story with the world in an attempt to be more open about her journey, and also to give herself a chance to process the reality of her situation.
“I also know how much sharing in the past has helped me with other people giving me their love and support, and also their own stories,” she explained. “I’m an open book. It breaks my heart that so many people are going through so much – similar and worse.”
“I’m getting to keep my nipples, that’s good,” she continued. “It’s a weird topic and a weird situation. And I know the press are going to say crazy stuff but you know what, to get diagnosed with this as I’m putting out a song called ‘No Secrets’ right before a song called ‘Living My Best Life,’ which was all pre-planned before I found out about this, I mean, you can’t make it up.”
Indeed, Jessie J’s news comes shortly after the release of her single “Living My Best Life,” which arrived on May 16. In the caption to her Instagram post, the singer added levity to her situation, writing “No (more) Secrets and is it too soon to do a remix called ‘Living my breast life’?”
In closing her video to fans, Jessie J explained that she will “disappear for a bit” to undergo surgery following her performance at the Summertime Ball in England on June 15.
Jessie J’s decision to be open and honest with her health journey aligns with her comments from July, in which she revealed a recent diagnosis of obsessive compulsive behavior (OCD) and attention-deficit/hyperactivity (ADHD).
“It’s empowered me and honestly sometimes has overwhelmed me all at the same time,” she explained, noting that the information had made her think about her life in a whole new way. “If there is one thing social media has given me, it’s the chance to relate, connect and heal with strangers that have kind hearts and are going through a similar thing.
“I have always been honest in the journey I’m going through in life.”
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More than three years on from their last studio record, New York trio Big Thief have detailed their sixth album, Double Infinity.
Set for release on Sept. 5 via 4AD, Double Infinity serves as the follow-up to the band’s Grammy-nominated album, Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe In You. Recorded at New York City’s Power Station over the winter with longtime collaborator Dom Monks, the nine-track release arrived as the result of three weeks of marathon nine-hour sessions spent working with a tight-knit community of musicians.
The album’s announcement is also paired by the release of lead single ‘Incomprehensible,” a track which served as a staple of the band’s 2024 summer tour, and carried over into vocalist and guitarist Adrianne Lenker’s solo shows that same year.
The new record is also the first to be released by Big Thief as a trio, having announced the departure of longtime bassist Max Oleartchik in July 2024, citing “interpersonal reasons” for his exit.
Double Infinity’s impending release is also the latest in a series of happenings for Big Thief and its associated members this year. In February, Big Thief unveiled a new L.A. wildfires benefit EP, with Passional Relations collecting some of their “favorite unreleased songs” to aid relief for those impacted by the fires in Los Angeles.
In late April, Lenker would release the Live at Revolution Hall album, while drummer James Krivchenia released the record Performing Belief in early May. Days later, the group would announce a run of North American tour dates, with the Somersault Slide 360 Tour set to launch in September.
Big Thief first formed in 2015 following two years of Lenker and guitarist Buck Meek performing as a duo. Their debut album arrived in 2016, with their third album – 2019’s U.F.O.F. – peaking at No. 142 on the Billboard 200. Their latest album, Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe in You, would reach No. 31, and receive a Grammy nomination for best alternative album, and best alternative music performance for second single, “Certainty.”
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As Neil Young prepares to tour the U.S. this summer, he’s invited President Donald Trump to attend one of his shows as a way to remind him of “American values.”
Young’s comments appeared in a new post on his Archives website on Monday (June 2), which saw him ruminating on the current state of affairs in the U.S. ahead of the launch of his North American tour dates in August.
“Our country and our way of life, that which our fathers and theirs fought for, is now threatened by our government,” Young wrote. “This is not what we voted for. This is our new reality. Our government is out of control, not standing for us. You can stand up for American values this summer, for our children and theirs.
“When I tour the USA this summer, if there is not martial law by then which would make it impossible, let’s all come together and stand for American values,” he added. “We will not be doing a political show. We will be playing the music we love for all of us to enjoy together. President Trump, you are invited. Come and hear our music just as you did for decades.”
Young’s invitation to Trump aligns with the President’s previous comments about his fondness for the Canadian rocker’s music. “He’s got something very special,” Trump told Rolling Stone in 2008, reflecting on his numerous times seeing Young in concert and having him perform at his casinos. “I’ve met him on occasions and he’s a terrific guy.”
However, the pair have undeniably altered their opinions of each other since then, with Young having become increasingly more outspoken regarding Trump’s policies since his first term as President. In April, Young had even noted that he feared constant criticism of Trump may result in a potential blacklisting from the country ahead of his upcoming tour dates.
“If the fact that I think Donald Trump is the worst president in the history of our great country could stop me from coming back, what does that say for Freedom?” Young mused. “I love America and its people and its music and its culture.”
More recently, Young labelled Trump “out of control” in May after he made a Truth Social post which saw the POTUS describe Bruce Springsteen as “highly overrated” and “dumb as a rock,” while saying that Taylor Swift is “no longer ‘HOT.’”
“Bruce and thousands of musicians think you are ruining America,” Young wrote in response to Trump’s comments. “You worry about that instead of the dyin’ kids in Gaza. That’s your problem. I am not scared of you. Neither are the rest of us. You shut down FEMA when we needed it most. That’s your problem Trump. STOP THINKING ABOUT WHAT ROCKERS ARE SAYING. Think about saving America from the mess you made.”
Young is currently scheduled to launch his forthcoming tour with the Chrome Hearts in Rättvik, Sweden on June 18, with North American dates set to begin in Charlotte, NC on Aug. 8
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Offset doesn’t seem too happy about Cardi B and New England Patriots wide receiver Stefon Diggs going public over the weekend.
The new couple went viral when videos of a yacht party surfaced just as the NFL’s organized team activities were starting up, and while the team activities weren’t mandatory, Diggs’ absence was frowned upon by his head coach Mike Vrabel because it’s his first season with the Pats.
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Offset also wasn’t the biggest fan of the videos, tweeting, “Good roll out n PR.” He has since deactivated his X account and his Instagram account after letting off a string of X posts earlier Tuesday that someone may get hurt seemingly over a picture floating around that suggests his and Cardi’s son Wave has the same hairstyle as Diggs. “Now when somebody die for playing with my son then call me the crash out,” he wrote in a since-deleted message. “Idc how I look trolling wit my kid ends bad.”
Offset and Cardi B are currently in the midst of a messy divorce, in which the former Migos member asked for spousal support, prompting a vitriolic reaction from the Bronx rapper on X Spaces where she said she wanted him to “die slow.”
Cardi also said Offset’s alleged cheating, lies and gaslighting affected her third pregnancy in negative ways. “It’s more than the cheating,” she claimed on X Spaces. “It’s the constant lies, the gaslighting — it was really messing up my with my head … I couldn’t eat, I couldn’t sleep. My baby came out five pounds. A healthy baby. My baby came out five pounds, because I couldn’t eat, I was so depressed.”
The couple were married for six years and have three children together.
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Today (June 4), Music Nation Copyrights Management, which handles music rights management in the United Arab Emirates, announced the company received formal approval to license, collect and distribute royalties from public performance and neighboring rights. The approval will deliver a vital new source of revenue for music rights holders, according to Music Nation.
Through partnerships with performing rights organization BMI and digital global collective management organization SoundExchange, Music Nation will be the industry’s first rights management organization capable of natively collecting performance, mechanical and neighboring rights.
“Today marks a pivotal moment for the UAE and Music Nation,” said Music Nation chairwoman Rasha Khalifa Al Mubarak in a release. “After years of careful planning, Music Nation is positioned to become a cornerstone of music licensing, empowering the Emirates’ vibrant creative industry. As an Emarati, I am honored to establish a world-class music rights infrastructure that not only elevates local artists to greater heights, but also showcases our rich musical heritage and cultural traditions to the world.”
Music Nation is part of a broad UAE initiative to support the creation of a thriving music ecosystem and to elevate the region’s music industry by protecting the rights of music creators and compensating them for the commercial use of their work.
“The Ministry [of Economy] continues its efforts to develop an advanced system for the governance of copyright and related rights, based on global best practices. This is achieved by developing regulatory and legislative frameworks, stimulating investment in creativity, and supporting effective collective management systems that ensure the protection of rights and enhance the confidence of creators and musicians in the country’s creative climate,” said undersecretary of the Ministry of Economy Abdullah Ahmed Al Saleh in a release.
He continues: “The collective management license for music plays an important role in promoting a creative culture in society, providing comprehensive protection for the intellectual property rights of musicians and artists, and providing mechanisms to ensure financial justice for artists and creators in the distribution of revenues and transparency in the collection and distribution of copyrights. This supports raising the competitiveness of the music industry in the country and making it an attractive destination for creative and cultural works worldwide.”
Music Nation will begin collecting royalties in the UAE for more than 2 million songwriters, composers, publishers, artists, sound recording owners and other music creators. That 2 million figure represents the combined copyrights held by clients of BMI and SoundExchange. Music Nation will collect and distribute royalties on their behalf in the UAE.
“We are thrilled to partner with Rasha, the Music Nation team and SoundExchange to ensure that music creators in the UAE have the opportunity to turn their passion into their careers by being paid for their creative work,” said BMI president and CEO Mike O’Neill in a release. “BMI has always been an unwavering advocate for the songwriters, composers and rights holders behind the songs the world loves, and we’re excited to provide our music licensing infrastructure, expertise and deep experience fostering career development to benefit the region’s incredible creators. There are endless possibilities ahead that Music Nation will deliver, and we look forward to a bright future together.”
The UAE and the broader Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region remain the fastest-growing music market in the world, with the IFPI reporting the territory expanded in 2024 for a tenth consecutive year. Music revenue in MENA last year climbed by 22.8%, outpacing the global average of 5.9% growth.
“This is a major milestone and a vote of confidence from the UAE Ministry of Economy in the combined abilities of Music Nation, SoundExchange and BMI,” said SoundExchange president and CEO Michael Huppe in a release. “We’re excited to get to work establishing the region’s premier collective management organization and serving creators with the same level of excellence we have for more than two decades in the U.S.”
A second round of Spotify price increases have come to France, the world’s sixth-largest recorded music market. Starting Monday (June 2), Spotify individual subscriptions rose 9.2% to 12.14 euros ($13.81) from 11.12 euros ($12.65), a company spokesperson confirmed to Billboard. Additionally, family plans rose to 21.24 euros ($24.15), two-person “duo” plans increased to 17.20 euros ($19.56) and student plans increased to 7.07 euros ($8.04).
With those increases, France’s prices are now comparable to Belgium, where an individual premium plan was raised to 11.99 euros ($13.63) in April. In nearby Netherlands and Luxembourg, an individual premium account costs 12.99 euros ($14.77). The U.K., where Spotify last raised prices in 2024, an individual premium plan costs 11.99 GBP ($16.21). U.S. and Australian prices were also raised a second time in 2024.
The individual premium plan remains less expensive elsewhere in Western Europe: 10.99 euros ($12.50) in Germany, Spain and Italy, and 7.99 euros ($9.09) in Portugal. Prices in parts of Northern Europe are comparable to France. An individual premium plan costs 119 SEK ($12.37) in Sweden and 129 NOK ($12.70) in Norway. An outlier is Denmark, where the same plan goes for 109 DKK ($16.62).
Spotify raised prices in France in May 2024 after the country passed a streaming tax that requires platforms that earn more than 20 million euros ($22 million) in annual revenue to pay an additional 1.2% charge. Upon passage of the bill in December 2023, Spotify pulled its support for two local music festivals.
Higher prices, along with growth in the number of subscribers, pushed Spotify’s revenue up 16% in the first quarter. In Spotify’s early high-growth years, prices were unchanged as the company added value through new features and audio formats such as podcasts and audiobooks. In the last two years, growth has slowed, and Spotify has raised prices without consumer backlash. “Price increases are now part of our toolbox,” Spotify’s co-president/chief business officer Alex Norström explained during the company’s April 29 earnings call, “and we take steps to balance the value to price ratio over time — adding value, and then we adjust the price when it makes sense for the market.”
Record label executives have also voiced their belief that platforms such as Spotify will continue to raise prices in the coming years. “One key shift in the industry is that it’s moving from just subscriber growth to growth driven by both subscribers and price increases,” and price increases are “more regular” than in the past, Warner Music Group CEO Robert Kyncl said during the company’s May 8 earnings call.
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Taylor Swift is enjoying quite the sales boost following her Friday (May 30) announcement that she had purchased the masters of her first six albums. Based on preliminary data from Luminate, we’re starting to get a sense of which albums Swifties are turning to most frequently to celebrate.
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Looking at her Republic Records studio catalog, not including the Taylor’s Version re-recordings, all those albums experienced gains from Friday-Saturday (May 30-31), ranging from the slight 5.6% gain that The Tortured Poets Department experienced in sales when compared to the daily average of the preceding 11-day period, to the 21.9% increase her Evermore album enjoyed when comparing those periods, according to Billboard‘s calculations based Luminate’s on preliminary sales and streaming activity data.
Meanwhile, the Taylor’s Version albums almost all outperformed the Evermore increase, except for the 1989 re-record, which just missed out by growing 21.3% in the two-day average after the announcement versus the previous 11-day average: Red (Taylor’s Version) grew by 23.2%, Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) by 27.5% and Fearless (Taylor’s Version) by 27.9%, per preliminary data from Luminate, Billboard calculates.
Moving over to Swift’s Big Machine albums, the original 1989 album had the least amount of growth but even its percentage increase of 41.2% swamped the percentage gains posted by all the Republic albums. Leading the growth charge, Taylor Swift’s eponymous first album enjoyed a 484.4% increase, followed by Speak Now with a 343.9% increase in the two days after the announcement versus the 11 days prior; Reputation, up 328%; Red at 173.7% greater; and Fearless with a 140.4% rise when comparing the two periods, Billboard further calculates.
However, even with the original whopping percentage gains on a unit count basis for the two periods, none of those albums outperformed the Taylor’s Version albums in absolute sales for the post-announcement two-day period. For example, 1989 (Taylor’s Version) averaged a few hundred above 2,000 album consumption units for the two-day period, while the original version’s total album consumption was a few hundred over 1,000 units.
Even the original Speak Now, which saw a 343.9% increase, fell 10 units shy of Speak Now (Taylor’s Version), when looking at the average total consumption units for the two-day period.
On a unit basis, Reputation the biggest gain — nearly 6,000 units — to bring total sales on average for the two-day period to nearly 8,000 units, versus the nearly 2,000 units the album averaged in the 11 days prior to the announcement. In fact, that album was by far the best performing album in the Swift catalog over the two-day period.
https://i0.wp.com/neztelinc.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/station.nez_png.png?fit=943%2C511&ssl=1511943Yvetohttps://neztelinc.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/nez_png.pngYveto2025-06-04 03:00:322025-06-04 03:00:32Which Taylor Swift Albums Are Seeing the Biggest Gains After She Reclaimed Her Masters?
The Game wasn’t happy with Complex‘s list of the top 50 L.A. rappers of all time, so he made his own list and posted it on Instagram with a lengthy caption attached.
“A few days ago @complexmusic dropped a list of the Top 50 LA rappers,” the Compton rapper began. “I don’t know who gave final approval but I get it… ‘playas f— up too!!!’ I was born and raised in this city and I’ve never moved from it, left it for more then two months or abandoned it to call anywhere else home. I’ve lost brothers, family, friends, and damn near my own life to the lifestyle that so many people around the world try to imitate.”
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He added: “I say that to say, I AM LA… I’ve mastered the art of surviving in this city that has claimed so many & believe when I say.. I’ve been in the trenches since my birth.”
On the Complex list, The Game falls just outside the top 10 at No. 11.
He went on to mention his own standing within L.A. rap history and seemed confident in his picks. “Forty-five years the music created here has been the soundtrack to my life,” he wrote. “And here I stand today as one of thee koldest rappers in the history of the city, state and coast I’ve given my blood sweat and tears to. Everybody on this list know what it is with me out here and those not on the list understand that the names above from top to bottom best represent this city and its culture.”
He then continued about including certain rappers who weren’t born in L.A. but have claimed and repped the city as their own, like 2Pac, who was born in New York City but raised in Baltimore and the Bay Area before becoming closely affiliated with Los Angeles during a good portion of his rap career.
“The few rappers on the list that weren’t specifically born here are on the list because of their dedication and choice to ride with the city once they got here,” he said in regards to Complex deciding to leave ‘Pac off of their list. “It’s non debatable!!! Argue all you want to but this is how I feel… if I’m wrong, challenge my pen and let me remind you of what and who I am. At the end of the day, this my list punk!!!! I was born here and I will die here…. Sincerely, the Coast Guard.”
The Game’s list is twice as long as Complex‘s, and his top 50 is somewhat similar aside from the order, but the main difference is that he decided to include rappers like 2Pac and The D.O.C. (from Texas) for their contributions to LA rap history even though they weren’t born there.
https://i0.wp.com/neztelinc.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/station.nez_png.png?fit=943%2C511&ssl=1511943Yvetohttps://neztelinc.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/nez_png.pngYveto2025-06-04 03:00:312025-06-04 03:00:31The Game Picks His Top 100 L.A. Rappers: ‘This My List, Punk!’
Ye (formerly Kanye West) regrets what he’s said about mentor and former collaborator Jay-Z.
Over the weekend, the controversial artist took to X to say that he often “dreams” of making amends. “All my dreams have been about apologizing to Jay Z,” he wrote.
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In another deleted post back in April, he said he was “sorry” for his past transgressions, specifically when he insinuated that Jay and his wife’s Beyoncé‘s young twins Rumi and Sir Carter have mental disabilities in a rant on X a month before in March. “I’m sorry Jay Z,” he tweeted on April 10. “I be feeling bad about my tweet but I still feel I gave my life to this industry and thought so many people were my family but when I needed family on some real sh– none of these rap n—as had my back.”
Later during the month of April, Ye revealed that he and Jigga had a falling out over a bar referring to his red MAGA hat on the song “Jail” from Ye’s 2021 album Donda, where he floated the idea that their supergroup The Throne may be able to make a return to glory. “Stop all of that red cap, we goin’ home,” Jay rapped. “Not me with all of these sins, castin’ stones/ This might be the return of The Throne.”
Ye was in the news earlier Monday when another former collaborator, Pusha T, addressed their current relationship — a relationship Ye recently said that he wants to fix.
https://i0.wp.com/neztelinc.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/station.nez_png.png?fit=943%2C511&ssl=1511943Yvetohttps://neztelinc.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/nez_png.pngYveto2025-06-03 03:00:472025-06-03 03:00:47Ye Says He ‘Dreams’ of Apologizing to Jay-Z
A Honduras-based hotel owner says he’s reviving the Fyre Festival brand alongside Billy McFarland as a pop-up experience at his island resort, marking the latest twist in a bizarre saga.
Heath Miller, a former New York concert promoter and one-time manager of Webster Hall in Manhattan, says he reached an agreement with McFarland to stage a 300-to-400-person Fyre Resort Pop-Up at his hotel, Coral Villa Utila, located on the island of Utila, one of Honduras’ famed Bay Islands in the Caribbean. The event will run from Sept. 3-10.
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Tickets are cheap: Just book a room at Miller’s 25-room resort, and a pass for Fyre is included. Rooms start at $198 per night for singles, $329 for couples, $399 for triples and $449 for the hotel’s four-bed room.
Miller is quick to point out that the September event is not being billed as Fyre Festival II, adding that tickets from that event won’t get you access to the Fyre Resort Pop-Up, which he says will be more low key than what had been planned for Fyre’s comeback festival in Playa Del Carmen, Mexico. There will be live entertainment, although Miller notes that he hasn’t secured any talent yet and says the festival won’t have a large budget or a splashy lineup.
“This event isn’t for an artist looking for a $100,000 fee,” he says. “Honestly, for me, this is a promotional vehicle for my hotel and it plays into my grand plan — I’m working on writing a book on my music career, and the book was supposed to end last June [with a story about] Jack Antonoff in Asbury Park. But instead, I guess Fyre is going to be the final chapter of the book.”
In Miller’s estimation, the controversy around the disastrous 2018 festival — which garnered international headlines when ticketholders arrived on a Bahamian island to find that the promised luxury event had not been realized — may ultimately be the biggest draw.
“Fyre Festival is a tainted brand that obviously has a horrible reputation, but at the end of the day, this brand can create press and awareness better than Coachella can,” he says.
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Miller has been managing the hotel since 2019 for his late father, who bought the island resort in the 1990s. He says his idea for the Fyre pop-up is partially inspired by Sixthman, the concert and cruise ships company owned by Norwegian Cruise Lines that stages music-themed cruises for artists like Lindsay Stirling, Joe Bonamassa and comedian Nate Bargatze.
“Originally, I wanted to do fan club and events here,” on Utila, says Miller, who hoped to match music with scuba diving and water excursions. He adds, “Fans want to engage with the artist in unique and different ways and see them play in unique settings,” noting that the Fyre pop-up presented a rare opportunity to build proof of concept.
Under the terms of their agreement, McFarland maintains full ownership of Fyre, and Miller will serve as venue manager and site host.
Miller says he’s already secured permits and local approval for the Fyre Resort Pop-Up and said he hopes the famed festival brand creates some positive buzz for Utila. The island is popular year-round with scuba divers and snorkelers who visit the island to swim with sharks and explore the 600-mile-long Mesoamerican Barrier Reef, but it isn’t as well-known as other Caribbean destinations like Barbados, St. Lucia, and the Turks and Caicos Islands.
Miller adds he’s well aware of McFarland’s past failures with Fyre Festival, most famously with the disastrous first edition in 2018, which left hundreds of fans temporarily trapped on Grand Exuma island. McFarland masterminded the event, according to the FBI, convincing fans to shell out thousands for luxury accommodations that turned out to be emergency tents and gourmet meals that were little more than cheese sandwiches.
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McFarland went to prison after admitting to stealing $26 million from investors for the event and has been working to repay them since being released from prison in 2022 after serving four years of his six-year sentence. While serving in solitary confinement, McFarland came up with the idea for a sequel to Fyre, which he had hoped would repair his image, and bounced around different sites in the Bahamas and Mexico before landing on Playa del Carmen near Cancun. McFarland ultimately hired Mexican firm Lost Nights to produce the event and staged a press conference on March 27 with local officials to highlight it.
However, things went south in April when city leaders from Playa del Carmen announced that no permits for Fyre Festival had been issued in the seaside town. McFarland responded by releasing images of permits that he said proved Fyre was happening, but he later pulled the plug on the event and refunded ticket holders. On April 24, McFarland announced he was selling Fyre’s assets and intellectual property and had reached an agreement with a streaming service to license the name.
Miller says McFarland retains the name for Fyre and has a core team of a half-dozen individuals working with him, including his long-time partner, Michael Falb.
“I’m well aware of Billy’s past and I think it’s important that we are transparent about what happened. I personally met with the mayor of Utila when securing the permits for this event and even showed him the documentaries about Fyre Festival,” Miller said of the films FYRE: The Greatest Party That Never Happened and Fyre Fraud, both of which were released in 2019 and chronicled the festival’s rise and fall.
“Billy has issues and one of his biggest flaws is that he tends to trust people more than he should,” Miller says, noting that McFarland reminds him of himself when he was a young promoter working New York’s nightlife circuit as an independent concert promoter, both for himself and for John Scher’s Metropolitan Concerts and later Webster Hall. Miller notes he worked with McFarland prior to Fyre Festival, when McFarland was running millennial VIP company Magnises.
“He never stiffed me on a bill — we always got paid what we were owed,” Miller says. “I look at Billy’s mistakes and I ask myself what I would have done if I was controlling millions of dollars for a huge party. I don’t know. What I can tell you about Billy is that he a big kid at heart that really just wants to throw the world’s greatest party.”
https://i0.wp.com/neztelinc.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/station.nez_png.png?fit=943%2C511&ssl=1511943Yvetohttps://neztelinc.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/nez_png.pngYveto2025-06-03 03:00:472025-06-03 03:00:47Fyre Festival Brand Revived by Honduran Hotel Owner for Pop-Up Event: ‘I’m Well Aware of Billy’s Past’