Revolve's Festival compared to FYRE FEST – influencers complain about 'pushing, shoving, shouting'

Photos from this weekend’s Revolve Festival show smiling influencers in trendy outfits, posing in front of picture-perfect scenes — but according to some who had invites, the experience wasn’t quite as glamorous as images indicate.

Several attendees at the event, which played host to several celebrities, including Kim Kardashian, Halsey, and Kendall Jenner, have complained of ‘poor transportation’ and ‘bad management,’ saying that they were stranded in a parking lot for hours waiting for shuttles that didn’t come.

Antsy ticket-holders were left hot and dizzy with no water, leading to several allegedly passing out.

Some complained of ‘pushing, shoving, and shouting’ as influencers fought for spaces on buses when they finally did arrive – prompting comparisons to the infamous Fyre Festival and the dystopian Hunger Games series. 

The exclusive event is held annually during the first weekend of Coachella but isn’t affiliated with the bigger festival.

Now in its fifth year — with a two-year hiatus due to the pandemic — Revolve Festival has its own musical performances, as well as countless expertly-crafted photo ops.  

But the journey to get there was far from picture-perfect, according to some who have spoken out.

Los Angeles Magazine’s Joseph Kaps broke the news on Twitter on Saturday, writing that there was ‘drama going down at Revolve Festival’ which ‘sinks to level of Fryre Festival.’

‘Influencers stranded in the dirt with no water, under the hot sun for HOURS, waiting for buses that aren’t coming to bring them to actual festival,’ he wrote, saying that there were ‘alleged fights, screaming, [and] everyone is dizzy.’ 

‘Security had crowds of influencers yelling how “important they were and why they deserved the first seat,”‘ he continued.

He described ‘chaos,’ quoting a security guard who said: ‘I don’t know who the F these people are. I don’t who is actually important and who is lying, or if any of them are important.’

Accounts soon began coming in from influencers who were there — but never actually made it to the festival, giving up after hours of waiting. 

One, Averie Bishop, said the problem stemmed from the fact that attendees could only get to the festival in one of Revolve’s own shuttles — which didn’t come frequently enough.

She and a friend waited in line for two hours before they finally ‘bailed.’ 

‘The logistics of getting to the festival… out of [control],’ she said, while her friend added that it was ‘dangerous.’

‘There was pushing, shoving, shouting, yanking people in front of the buses. People standing in between the buses while they were moving! Just to get on these buses and get to the Revolve Festival,’ she said.

TikToker Hannah Kosh confirmed, saying: ‘You guys, it was all of that and more. People were raiding the buses. The bus drivers refused to come back. I saw three people pass out in line myself. Wild.’

Another TikToker, Kristi Howard, said she flew in from Nashville with her boyfriend to attend the event, but never got inside.

‘Waiting 5 hours in line like we were told didn’t get us anywhere thx to great security & organized transportation,’ she said. 

‘Now I love Revolve, everything I wear is Revolve, but Revolve Festival was a sh**show, it was a disaster,’ she went on. 

Kristi insisted she’s ‘not entitled at all,’ but there was ‘poor transportation, communication, and bad management’ that ruined the experience.

Kristi also complained of ‘randos’ who behaved badly, ‘shoving and acting like psychos.’ 

‘I think it was just an oversold event. People were acting like wild monkeys,’ she said, adding that it was ‘stressful’ and a ‘madhouse.’

While she conceded that people who who did get into the event looked like they had fun and posted a lot of great photos, she noted that they are expected share content to as part of their invitation. 

‘I don’t know why they’re acting like they didn’t just get trampled to get there,’ she said.

Kristi was also one of several attendees who say they had to spend quite a bit of money to attend. Typically, Revolve pays influencers’ expenses for attending, and will even give them store credit to purchase outfits from its website to wear.

But this year, Revolve appears to have extended invites beyond big influencers, sending last-minute invites to smaller ‘micro-influencers’ as well — and they didn’t get the same privileges. 

Kirsti said she spend hundreds on her flights and other transportation, while Maria Caballero said she was asked by Revolve to pay $2,000 just to get a spot on the guest list.

“When you get an email from REVOLVE inviting you to REVOLVE festival but they’re asking you to pay $2k instead of [bringing] a +1,’ Maria wrote on TikTok, sharing a screenshot of the email.

‘@Revolve it’s giving greedy,’ wrote one commenter, while another said, ‘Lmfao not them charging u to pay for the other influencers??’

Meanwhile, on Twitter, @iamchrismangos asserted that Revolve Festival was ‘the MOST unorganized event I’ve ever gone too.’ 

‘They had ppl waiting outside in the heat with no water, there was no data to even call a Uber to leave. I was sitting in line for 3 hours. There’s so much more omg,’ he tweeted.

Revolve Festival also had a roster of celebrities turn up — though none of them would have had to take the buses.

Among the stars in attendance were Kim Kardashian, Kendall Jenner, Halsey, Chloe and Halle Bailey, Sydney Sweeney, Chanel Iman, Storm Reid, and Olivia Culpo.

DailyMail.com has reached out to a Revolve spokesperson for comment.