Who acquired Fyre Festival’s IP? Notorious event to be launched as a music streaming service

Billy McFarland's infamous music event, the Fyre Festival, is set to be launched as a music streaming service. Citing producer and director Shawn Rech, Deadline reported on Tuesday, April 22, 2025, that the filmmaker acquired some of the IP of the festival that would allow him to launch a platform.

For the unversed, Fyre Festival was a fraudulent event that took place at a private beach in the Bahamas in 2017. Businessman Billy McFarland and rapper Ja Rule organized the event, promising ticketholders a two-week event with gourmet meals and luxury villas.

However, it ended up being laden with problems involving accommodation, food, security, medical services, and even artists. Following a criminal investigation, federal officers arrested and charged McFarland with one count of wire fraud in 2017.

The announcement of Shawn Rech's deal comes shortly after news that Fyre Festival 2 would be postponed indefinitely made headlines.

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Billy McFarland still retains rights to Fyre Festival and is on the lookout for venues for its sequel

In February 2025, tickets for the second iteration of the festival went on sale, with Billy telling NBC News things would be different. It was set to take place in Playa del Carmen, Mexico, from May 30 to June 2. However, earlier this month, ABC News revealed the organizers have postponed it indefinitely.

Deadline reported that Shawn Rech has now acquired rights to a part of the event, including two trademarks that would allow him to launch the streaming service. It is worth noting that Rech previously co-founded the true crime-centered streaming service, TruBlue, alongside To Catch a Predator host Chris Hansen.

Talking to the publication about his reasons behind the move, Rech explained:

"Music networks are all just programming now and I have no interest in watching people slip on bananas. It has nothing to do with music. I needed a big name that people would remember, even if it’s attached to infamy, so that’s why I bought these to start the streaming network."

Rech emphasized that his goal behind the streaming platform was to place the "power of music discovery" back into the hands of fans and not the festival itself. He asserted that they were building something "authentic and lasting."

Per Deadline, Rech does not have the rights to the Fyre Festival itself, and it remains in the hands of Billy McFarland. The businessman is reportedly still on the lookout for a new venue.

The outlet described Rech's platform as a user-submitted and fan-curated service. It would include a $3.99 subscription-based feature, along with FAST (free ad-supported streaming television) channels. It would start off with FAST feeds featuring pop music and hip, with plans to include other genres in the future.

The application that is based on the Fyre Festival will be launched on Thanksgiving, much like the filmmaker's other business ventures.

"I’m superstitious," Rech told Deadline.

The first iteration of the Fyre Festival took place in 2017 on the island of Great Exuma, Bahamas. It garnered hype after being promoted by celebrities like Bella Hadid and Hailey Baldwin. After its controversial launch, the organizers eventually canceled the event.

McFarland later pleaded guilty to the wire fraud charge and was sentenced to six years in prison and ordered to forfeit $26 million in 2018. The businessman was released in March 2022 after serving less than four years. Two documentaries surrounding the Fyre Festival debacle came out in 2019: Hulu's Fyre Fraud and Netflix's Fyre: The Greatest Party That Never Happened.

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McFarland has not publicly commented on the development yet.