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Otago Daily Times
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Otago Daily Times
Wānaka ‘little bit like home' for musician
Sean Tinker arrived in Wānaka ago seven years ago and expected to stay six months. PHOTO: SUPPLIED Irish luck would have it that Sean Tinker was in the right place at the right time when he arrived for his first night in Wānaka seven years ago. Having driven down from the North Island, he arrived in Wānaka the day before St Patrick's Day and decided to celebrate leading into the Irish celebration. At about 2am, a helpful New Zealander offered him a job and the rest is history. "I was in the smoking area in Lalaland, someone offered me a job and sponsorship making aluminum doors. "He said 'are you Irish? Do you want a job? I have worked with Irish people before, you are really good'. "He then asked 'can you do aluminum architecture and joinery?' and I was like 'no', he then says 'can you use a power tool?' and I am like 'yes', and he says, 'you will be fine'." Tinker, who is now a fulltime musician between Wānaka and Queenstown, had planned on staying about six months, but the job in joinery kept him here and gave him stability. "I didn't really get much better at it, but he kept me on." The 33-year-old is a familiar face around Wānaka's nightlife, playing live gigs at Cork Bar or Water Bar and dabbling in comedy too. Having been brought up in Wicklow, Ireland, he said Wānaka reminded him a little of home. "It is a nice seaside town, a lot like Wānaka. With a lot of wealthy people having holiday homes there. We weren't on the rich side of it." Having never dreamed of being a fulltime musician, his musical journey started humbly back home. His father brought him a drum set when he was 12, which he became pretty good at, but it was short lived. "I was in a band at school doing Blink 182 covers and my neighbours had a baby so I couldn't play the drums any more. I think my mum was silently happy about that." She gave him an old Spanish guitar and he became a little addicted. "Like anyone, your music taste is very narrow as a kid. You just like what you hear on the radio and then I branched out. I like Bob Dylan, I like Bruce Springsteen. When I was going out, the bars were always playing electronics so that has had its influence as well." Tinker said his older fans likened him to Ronan Keating. "There was this older Scottish lady who was trying to set me up and in doing so said 'don't you think he looks like Ronan Keating?' The woman didn't see the likeness." As all struggling musicians and artists do, he has worked in some colourful industries — a gym instructor, an English teacher in China, aluminum, and last year he was testing out old PlayStation games. "I met a guy who is selling retro video games through Trade Me. I would look at it and make sure it worked. I would be playing Mario Kart and yeah, for a year." Tinker's sound is upbeat and usually rock, but he does throw in some of his own songs when the mood suits. "If it is a relaxed Sunday afternoon gig I will. But if they are jumping up and down I won't slow down the mood. "I never thought it was anything I could make money from. Sometimes I would play at a bar and they would give me free beers and I thought that's amazing. I never thought I could get actual money out of it. "Playing music wasn't even an idea in my head. I thought that's something other people do, I can't do that." Working between music gigs and trades, he became burnt out. He said something had to give. When he picked up four gigs a week, Tinker took the plunge and began fulltime playing between Queenstown and Wānaka late last year. "Sometimes I would get home at 2-3am from Queenstown and then I'd have to be up at 6am the next day. I just couldn't do it." He said the culture for live music in New Zealand was a lot safer for musicians than back home, because it was not as saturated. "Bars can afford to shortchange people back home because if you don't want to do it, there are 50 guys who will." He plans on getting his citizenship and eventually buying a home somewhere in Central Otago. "It has always kind of felt a little bit like home. "I went to see the Lord Of The Rings with my grandma and so there is all that nostalgia for me. It has always felt a little bit like home."
Yahoo
15-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Rights to Fyre Festival sell for $245K on eBay
The rights to the troubled Fyre Festival brand have sold for only $245,000 in an eBay auction. The sale included IP, brand trademarks and social media assets. The auction received a total of 175 bids with the final bid coming in early Tuesday afternoon. Organizer Billy McFarland announced he was selling the brand in April, roughly a week after Fyre Festival 2 was postponed indefinitely and refunds were issued. 'Damn. This sucks, it's so low,' McFarland said during a livestream of the auction after the bids went over $240,000. McFarland said a brand bought the rights, but did not disclose the mystery buyer. Fyre Fest became a world-wide sensation for all the wrong reasons after its disastrous 2017 debut. The music festival promised a luxury experience in the Bahamas featuring big-name bands and A-list attendees. Instead, groups like Blink-182 canceled and ticketholders were forced to stay in flimsy disaster relief tents and eat thrown-together cheese sandwiches. The fiasco inspired dueling streaming documentaries and a host of criminal cases. McFarland pleaded guilty to wire fraud and other federal charges related to the festival and was released early from prison in 2022. He resumed work on a second festival on a private island in Mexico, but that ultimately fell apart, too. 'After two years of rebuilding FYRE with honesty, creativity and relentless effort, it's time to pass the torch,' McFarland wrote at the time on the festival's Instagram account. McFarland, who owes $26 million, said proceeds from the auction would go toward restituation.
Yahoo
15-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Billy McFarland Sells Fyre Festival Brand on Ebay for $245,300
The long, pathetic, sordid, criminal saga of Billy McFarland and the Fyre Festival came to an ignominious end Tuesday afternoon at precisely 12:44:11 pm EST when the convicted fraudster unloaded the brand and all trademarks related to the ill-fated musical festival on eBay for $245,300. McFarland still owes $26 million in restitution related to his wire fraud conviction, so he's going to have to keep scrounging around to raise the remaining $25,754,700. More from Rolling Stone Billy McFarland Is Now Trying to Unload the Fyre Fest Brand on eBay Billy McFarland Is Looking for a Buyer Who Wants to Make Fyre Fest Their Problem Instead Fyre Fest 2 Postponed, Obviously For those of you with no memory of 2017 and somehow missed Hulu's Fyre Fraud and Netflix's Fyre: The Greatest Party That Never Happened, the Fyre Festival was advertised as a luxury musical festival on an island in the Bahamas with lineup that included Blink-182, Pusha T, Tyga, Desiigner, Major Lazer, Disclosure, and Migos. But when fans arrived at the festival site, they were greeted with little more than dinky tents, grounds that resembled a refugee camp, and cheese sandwiches. It turned out that McFarland and his investors, including rapper Ja Rule, didn't have the money, means, or experience to stage the event. A wave of lawsuits followed, and McFarland was sentenced to six years in prison. McFarland was released in 2022 and immediately started to plan a second Fyre Festival. 'We have the chance to embrace this storm and really steer our ship into all the chaos that has happened,' he told NBC. 'And if it's done well, I think Fyre has a chance to be this annual festival that really takes over the festival industry.' Unsurprisingly, McFarland had absolutely no ability to deliver on that promise. This time around, however, the plug was pulled long before any guests arrived. In the aftermath, he decided to cut his losses and forever part ways with the brand. 'This brand is bigger than any one person,' Mr. McFarland said in a statement on Instagram. 'It's clear that I need to step back and allow a new team to move forward independently.' It's unclear who bought it, but they now own the Fyre Festival brand name, the social media accounts, 'comprehensive marketing assets,' the domain names, 'artist & talent relationships,' an 'extensive media coverage archive,' and 'access to the core team (optional).' This poses a few questions. First off, how exactly can 'artist and talent relationships' be sold? And weren't those relationships forever poisoned by the historic debacles of the past? It's hard to imagine that Blink-182's team sees this as a solid relationship. They won't exactly be like, 'A random person bought the Fyre Festival. We're obligated by the terms of an Ebay listing to work with them on their next endeavor, even though we were humiliated and stiffed out of money eight years ago by the original team.' Secondly, it's nice to see that access to McFarland and Ja Rule is optional, but is that really a selling point? They haven't proven themselves very adept at putting on this particular festival. Someone is going to give them a third attempt with their own money on the line? Finally, what exactly is this media archive? Is it linked to online articles documenting the collapse of the festival, the lawsuits that followed, and the pathetic attempt to stage a second one? Did they make a scrapbook of the print articles? These are assets? As we await answers, it's good to know that the Fyre Festival dream isn't dead. It's now in the hands of somebody else with $245,300 to spare. We look forward to seeing what they do with it. Best of Rolling Stone Sly and the Family Stone: 20 Essential Songs The 50 Greatest Eminem Songs All 274 of Taylor Swift's Songs, Ranked
Daily Mail
10-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Kourtney Kardashian ditches strict diet to enjoy a sweet treat with her kids and husband Travis Barker in Italy
Kourtney Kardashian has been enjoying a family getaway with two of her kids and husband Travis Barker in Portofino, Italy. The reality TV star, 46, was pictured sampling the local cuisine on Wednesday with the Blink-182 drummer, 49, their 18-month-old son Rocky Thirteen, and her daughter Penelope, 13, whom she shares with ex Scott Disick, 42. The Poosh founder and the musician were seen having dinner in the picturesque village, located on the Italian Riviera. Little Rocky was charmingly spotted clutching a tiny guitar while wearing a Rolling Stones t-shirt, already seeming to have inherited his father's love of music. At another point the toddler was hilariously pictured reaching out for an ice cream cone that Kourtney was holding, despite being known for her clean-eating lifestyle and avoiding processed sugars. Meanwhile Kourtney showed off her effortless style, wearing a turquoise silk slip dress with black lace details, along with a studded black leather biker jacket. She accessorized her look with a vintage Christian Dior by John Galliano 'Admit It' corset lace bag, a piece that resells for around $2,250. Kourtney easily navigated the cobbled streets in a pair of flip flops, and shielded her eyes with black sunglasses. Her black raven tresses were worn in a straight style, cascading down her shoulders. Meanwhile Rocky's colorful t-shirt was paired with black and white checkered shorts and Vans sneakers. Travis showed off his tattooed arms in a sleeveless t-shirt, with a pair of sunglasses perched atop his head. Penelope, who recently celebrated her birthday, sported a grey tank top and shorts. Aside from Penelope, Kourtney also shares sons Mason, 15, and Reign, 10, with ex Scott, though they were not pictured during the outing. The trip appears to be in celebration of Penelope's 13th birthday. Kourtney took to Instagram this week to highlight the special occasion and express her gratitude for motherhood. 'My daughter is 13 today,' she wrote over a photo of a floor covered in balloons. 'My heart is exploding with gratitude and love for her.' She also shared scenic snaps from Italy. 'I am so indescribably grateful for my sweet girl,' Kardashian wrote over a photo of a balcony view. 'She inspires me every day to be a better person.' The mother-of-four also noted the trip was extra special for a sentimental reason. 'My parents spent their honeymoon here 47 years ago, so special to get to bring my daughter here,' she typed over another image featuring a riviera. Kourtney and Travis' blended family also
BreakingNews.ie
08-07-2025
- Entertainment
- BreakingNews.ie
Tom DeLonge says paranormal film he directed ‘way more real than people realise'
Blink-182 guitarist Tom DeLonge has said a paranormal film he directed is more realistic than people might realise. Monsters Of California is a science-fiction adventure drama, directed and co-written by DeLonge, which follows a group of friends who are on a quest to discover the meaning behind a series of mysterious, paranormal events. Advertisement US musician DeLonge, 49, who makes his directorial debut, had a fascination with UFOs and the paranormal while growing up. Tom DeLonge of Blink 182 performs at Leeds Festival (Lewis Stickley/PA) He told the PA news agency: 'When I was younger we would go out to haunted houses, and then right after high school, we took a trip up into California, the northern territory of California, looking for Bigfoot. 'One time, we found out that he wasn't where we were at, but we did look for him. 'And so, I've been out to the desert many times (with) my friends, looking for UFOs and shit, you know, you go out there and smoke weed and just like, have fun, but you're still kind of like, 'What if something happens?' Advertisement 'So this is all shit that I've done… as well as meeting with people from the US government, and weird locations, and having these discussions that you see in the film. 'There's way more shit about this film that's real than people would even realise.' Speaking about the research he did, he added: 'I had some moments of jaw dropping, like world view-changing moments. 'I had other conversations where I was way in over my head and very nervous about what I got myself into, and then I had other conversations that were just absolutely enlightening and changed the way I just think about myself and how I live my life because of it. Advertisement 'So there's a bit of that in this film, but the enormity of what I've been involved in, personally, is probably for another film later.' The movie was made during the Covid-19 pandemic, according to DeLonge, and was released in US cinemas and on demand in 2023. Monsters Of California is available on digital in the UK from July 7th.
