NFT
Kygo Announces His First NFT Release
Earlier in the week, Kygo shared news that he would be joining the now-gargantuan list of dance music producers who’ve released NFTs. Since he simply announced the NFT and gave only its release date, there’s no word on the contents of the collection and whether or not the drop will contain new or unreleased music. Many artists before him have added an exclusive audio element to their drops, so it’s not unreasonable to speculate that Kygo may do the same. On Twitter, the Norwegian producer shared a short teaser video showing some of the visuals from the collection. For those who may not be familiar, NFTs are digital collectibles similar to an in-game item found in a video game. They can be bought, sold, or gifted to others in exchange for real money. There’s cur...
Destructo is Offering Guest List Access to His Shows for Life to the Buyer of His Debut NFT
As the NFT mania rages on, famed house music producer and FriendShip founder Destructo has tossed his sailor’s cap into the ring. The renowned music entrepreneur’s foray into the NFT space is an unconventional one. He has minted his music video for “Bassface,” a single released back in 2017, into a trippy 3D visualizer designed by visual artist Shin. According to the artwork’s bidding microsite, the owner of the rare 1/1 NFT “will have guest list access to all Destructo’s land based shows for life.” Destructo also confirmed the unique prize in a recent tweet. Destructo’s “Bassface” auction will conclude at 9:30PM PT (12:30AM ET) today, March 16th. You can place your bids via Foundation, a popular marketplace for NFT...
Elon Musk and Aphex Twin Release NFTs
Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) are the hottest way for your already-rich faves to get even richer. The latest movers and shakers to hit the virtual auction are world’s wealthiest man Elon Musk and electronic music legend Richard James, better known as Aphex Twin. As we’ve previously covered, NFTs are one-of-a-kind artworks that exist on a cryptocurrency blockchain. While exact replicas of an NFT may be widely distributed on the internet, the NFT itself is a limited edition virtual property that can be bought, held, or sold. l. We saw this a few weeks ago when Kings of Leon released NFT packages that featured their new album When You See Yourself. Anyone with an internet connection can listen to that record for free, but only a few affluent fans own it on the blockchain. Economists call th...
Aphex Twin’s Debut NFT Sold for $127,000 in 24 Hours
Aphex Twin has recruited the help of his longtime collaborator and world-class visual artist, Weirdcore, for the release of his debut NFT. Minted on the Foundation digital marketplace and shared on social media minutes later, fans and collectors only had 24 hours to bid on the piece. Despite being a short auction with even shorter notice, the item sold for 72 Ethereum, or just shy of $127,000. As shown in the official listing for the artwork, the visuals depict Aphex Twin’s iconic smile that’s graced several of his album covers and much of his live performance visuals. As one would expect, the sound provided in the near-minute-long video is from the producer himself. Haunting and madcap like many of his releases, the dark, grinding synth perfectly accompanie...
NGHTMRE Reveals Debut NFT Collection With Visual Artist GREG MIKE
NGHTMRE is the latest artist to explore the digital frontier of the NFT world. In collaboration with visual artist GREG MIKE, he will soon release a number of pieces later this week. Across both artists’ social media pages, a teaser video of the new collection was shared. Giving fans just an eight-second look at what’s to come, viewers can see some of the visual artist’s signature designs. While none of the sounds have been teased just yet, both NGHTMRE and GREG MIKE promise “unreleased visuals, music, and a few special items.” Considering GREG MIKE’s past NFT collections have featured physical accompaniments, some have speculated that the aforementioned “special items” will be physical pieces of art. The shop page for the collectio...
Elon Musk is Selling a Song About NFTs as an NFT
Considering the rapidly growing hype surrounding NFTs, it’s no surprise that business mogul and one-time electronic music producer Elon Musk has entered the digital art space with his own contribution. Musk tweeted earlier today that his own NFT will soon be up for sale, complete with a trippy animated video showing a golden “vanity trophy” engraved with the phrase “computers never sleep.” The piece is also soundtracked by a catchy house song ostensibly produced by the eccentric Tesla founder, who famously released an electronic track called “Don’t Doubt Ur Vibe” in early 2020. Check out Musk’s announcement below. Grammy Award-nominated dance music duo Disclosure was quick to respond, noting that they offered a similar NFT sale two weeks ago. NFTs, o...
Never Say Die Announces Debut NFT Collection
Never Say Die is set to become the next big electronic label to release its own NFT collection. Announced on Saturday across their social media pages, the “Rebirth” collection will be released later this week on Nifty Gateway. While the specific contents of the collection have not yet been shared, the teaser video features a skull fashioned with gold accessories, which should give fans a good idea of what to expect. Considering the fact that the leading digital artist, Beeple, recently sold a single NFT for $69 million, the hype surrounding the blockchain-powered artwork has never been higher. Those who keep up with the wild world of digital collectibles may remember that longtime Never Say Die favorite Zomboy released his own collection on the online ...
3LAU, Gramatik, More to Headline “The Beat Goes Live” Benefit Show
Bringing together artists and venues from around the globe, virtual events platform Paarti is gearing up for a big weekend of music streaming with their new THE BEAT GOES LIVE online festival. Taking place March 19th to 21st, proceeds will go directly to music venues and unspecified charities of their choice. Paarti is also ensuring THE BEAT GOES LIVE capitalizes on the current NFT boom by awarding exclusive digital artworks to top live donors. 3LAU, who recently sold a collection of NFT items for a record-breaking $11.6 million, is slated to kick off the weekend at 10AM PT (1PM ET) with a 30-minute set. Gramatik is also set to headline with his collaborative Cyberpunk project with Luxas. Notably, in 2017, Gramatik became the first artist to tokenize revenue streams.&n...
Madeon Announces Debut NFT Drop
Another day, another NFT drop. This time around, the digital art craze finds Grammy Award-nominated electronic music producer Madeon throwing his hat into the ring. The French wunderkind is set to unveil his debut NFT item, which he has dubbed “THE DISCHEAD.” According to a preview shared by marketplace Nifty Gateway, it seems the trippy visual art will be accompanied by music produced by Madeon. The collection will drop on Thursday, March 18th at 3:30PM PT (6:30PM ET). Check out the preview below. Madeon also shared the origins of NFT, which was designed by the artists responsible for the visuals from his “Good Faith Live” tour, Mollie Tarlow, OSEANWORLD, Shin OSM and Mike Kluge. In a candid Twitter thread, he said the new NFT drop “would be a ...
Steve Aoki on the Future of Digital Art: “NFTs are a Juggernaut That Cannot Be Stopped”
After selling his debut NFT collection for a cool $4.25 million, famed dance music producer Steve Aoki believes the future of digital art is bright. In collaboration with renowned visual artist Antoni Tudisco, Aoki’s debut “Dream Catcher” collection was sold on Nifty Gateway, one of the NFT industry’s leading marketplaces, to former T-Mobile CEO John Legere. Aoki’s team tells EDM.com that Legere forked over a record-breaking single auction price of $888,888.88 for a piece called “hairy.” “Music has always been what my life is rooted in, but I’ve been a passionate collector of collectibles and various forms of art for as long as I can remember,” Aoki said in a press statement. “NFTs gav...
The Artist-Superfan’s Brave New Superstore
Primary Wave, run by long-time music executive Larry Mestel, may steal the headlines. His company uses billions to buy the music publishing and masters of mega-artists like Fleetwood Mac’s Stevie Nicks, Bob Marley, Prince, and Whitney Houston. But Twitter shaman Jack Dorsey’s recent acquisition of Jay-Z’s streaming service, Tidal, by his company, Square, is equally tantalizing. And it points to something that is bubbling up in the business right now that is still early, but ultimately will build into a huge, new movement of massively monetizing direct artist-fan connection and engagement. Dorsey’s rationale for buying Tidal is to give artists a direct path to easily transact with their fans (think merchandise, for example), much like retailers use Square to cut out the credit card middlema...
Dillon Francis Mints Psychedelic NFT for Charitable Cause
Dillon Francis is diving deeper into the blockchain game by launching a new NFT, which is available now for charity auction. Developed by 3D artist Nicole Ruggiero, the quirky NFT titled “I think there’s something wrong with my phone” features a trippy visual of a translucent, paper-like cellphone interface. Synced to a beat crafted by Francis himself, the music pairs appropriately with the scene at hand featuring a thumping bassline and a swirling chorus of distorted background vox. The sale of the psychedelic visual will go towards an environmentally friendly cause as the artists have pledged to plant 100 trees in the winner’s name. You can make your bids here. Dillon Francis and Ruggiero first connected just a couple weeks ago, when the former purchas...
