Billy McFarland‘s giving up the iconic FYRE Festival brand … announcing he’s decided to sell amid all the scrutiny surrounding the second version of the event.

The founder of FYRE Festival released a statement Wednesday … letting fans know the last two years have been a commitment to finishing what he started and making things right following the absolute debacle that was the first FYRE Festival.

Billy points out FYRE Festival has dominated headlines for years … grabbing the attention of news agencies, documentarians and many fans around the globe — and, the event needs a team more experienced than him to get the second event over the finish line.

FF 2.0 has had its string of issues recently, including controversy over whether or not the local government in Mexico was aware the festival was supposed to take place in their city … something Billy mentions in the press release too — promising several Caribbean countries are interested in hosting the event.

McFarland won’t say where yet … and, he says it’s best if everything is kept under lock and key until he’s officially far away from FYRE — allowing a new team to move forward unencumbered by him.

As you know … Billy McFarland served four years in prison for wire fraud after the first festival did not live up to many of its promises.