For Fyre Festival story no. 439, we are treated to the leaked pitch deck potential investors were given ahead of the doomed event's disastrous kickoff and subsequent postponement. Monday night, Vanity Fair's Nick Bilton shared the Fyre Festival pitch presentation in full, calling it one of the "most preposterous" outside capital invitations he's ever seen.
There's a lot to unpack here, arguably too much to unpack, but here are a few selected bits of preposterousness from the Bilton-obtained Fyre Festival pitch deck:
- There's a Rumi quote slapped atop a photo collage of what the organizers hoped Fyre Fest would be: "Come, seek, for searching is the foundation of fortune."
- In another slide, the Fyre team vows that the "actual experience" of the festival "exceeds all expectations and is something that's hard to put to words." Additionally, this slide promises, Fyre will "IGNITE that type of ENERGY, that type of POWER in our guests."
- Explaining the Fyre vision, the pitch deck summarizes the Fyre goals while referencing the "five elements of the earth." According to this particular slide, Fyre has a five-year plan aimed at traveling the globe to discover "untouched lands" and flip them into "unparalleled experiences."
- Fyre Festival is touted as "the cultural experience of the decade." Can't argue with that.
The most notable part, however, is the designation of so-called "Fyre Starters." Fyre Starters are described as "ambassadors" who are part of the "Fyre Tribe." Starters of Fyre listed in the leaked deck include Kendall Jenner, Bella Hadid, Hailey Baldwin, Ashanti, and more.
On Monday, TMZ claimed that claimed that Fyre founders Ja Rule and Billy McFarland had been "barred" from attempting another festival in the Bahamas. Another festival, however, is apparently in the works for an alternate location and inaugural attendees have been offered the option of eschewing refunds in favor of VIP passes to the next one.
