Remember Fyre Festival? Of course you remember Fyre Festival. It was an entertaining trainwreck of the highest order, the kind of slow-motion disaster that you just can’t look away from. And now Belgium has had its very own Fyre Festival in the form of VestiVille, another luxury festival experience — with Ja Rule! — that turned out to be anything but.
VestiVille was supposed to take place this weekend, 6/28-30, in Kristalpark, Lommel. Along with Ja Rule and Ashanti, the bill boasted appearances from Cardi B, Future, A$AP Rocky, Migos, Meek Mill, and more. A promotional video for the fest, featuring a terrible Cardi B impersonator, promised guests luxury VIP villas with private gardens and room service.
https://twitter.com/MiamiRosexo/status/1144597034592325632
Instead, as Def Pen reports, concertgoers who arrived at the grounds were met with chaos and confusion. The morning of the festival, A$AP Rocky pulled out, citing “security and infrastructure concerns which relate to the production of the show.” Less than an hour later, the entire festival was cancelled.
“Today at 5:00 PM the mayor of Lommel decided to not let Vestiville start,” read a statement from the festival organizers. “After consultation with the security services and ASAP Rocky’s security officer, it was decided that the safety of the artist and the public could not be guaranteed.”
https://twitter.com/asvpxrocky/status/1144619474693345280
Today at 5:00 PM the mayor of Lommel decided to not let Vestiville start. After consultation with the security services and ASAP Rocky’s security officer, it was decided that the safety of the artist and the public could not be guaranteed.
— VestiVille (@VestiVille) June 28, 2019
Production and suppliers have given everything to make Vestiville possible. The campsite will remain open for the time being and an organized festival exit will be organized in consultation with the municipality.
— VestiVille (@VestiVille) June 28, 2019
Production and suppliers have given everything to make Vestiville possible. The campsite will remain open for the time being and an organized festival exit will be organized in consultation with the municipality.
— VestiVille (@VestiVille) June 28, 2019
The organisation will now consult with their official partners about a refund.
— VestiVille (@VestiVille) June 28, 2019
By the time the official cancellation announcement was made, festivalgoers had already been waiting for hours at the camp site. There was no food, water, or transportation available. Some attendees managed to get inside the locked fence of the festival grounds, where they helped themselves to beer, danced on the stage, and emptied fire extinguishers. Several hundred ticketholders ended up spending the night on the campgrounds before being shuttled to the train station by bus today.
VestiVille organizers tweeted that “the organisation will now consult with their official partners about a refund,” but it remains to be seen if that will end up happening. And The Brussels Times reports that thee of the organizers have now been charged with fraud involving false invoices, forgery, money laundering, and abuse of trust as a result of complaints brought by unpaid suppliers.
Check out scenes from Fyre Fest 2.0 below.
https://twitter.com/sixcharlotte_/status/1144646762017239041
https://twitter.com/HarveyBordley/status/1144340446170292224
Scenes at @VestiVille were beyond scary. Unprofessional and so unsafe. No announcement regarding cancellation and staff members put at risk. Ridiculous pic.twitter.com/IitjUjvFze
— Cristina LJoy ? (@CristinaXO_LJoy) June 28, 2019
Police were waiting inside with dogs for people to start running in instead of defusing and getting us to leave safely pic.twitter.com/S6T5Kr7DHG
— Cristina LJoy ? (@CristinaXO_LJoy) June 28, 2019
American Vestiville goers asking if their thousands of dollars will be refunded smh. Shame on you @VestiVille. #Vestiville pic.twitter.com/bmbtRJuNId
— BelgianKush (@BelgianKush) June 28, 2019
I was really the only act at #Vestiville ? pic.twitter.com/BGNQIgUKoE
— SAMMMY (@foreversammmy) June 28, 2019
Jacquees was the only artist that show up, aww bless him #Vestiville pic.twitter.com/LjPJV4ubgw
— SAMMMY (@foreversammmy) June 28, 2019
https://twitter.com/MiamiRosexo/status/1144651533331652608
This article originally appeared on Stereogum.
