2020 brought on a pandemic that made it impossible for musicians to earn from live shows. However, Covid-19 also brought out innovative ways for people to make money with music, such as online concerts and playlists on popular streaming sites such as Spotify. The icing on this cake was the discovery of integrating music into NFTs.
As more artists began to seek alternative sources of income, discovering that cryptocurrency could be leveraged for music-related activities was bound to happen. Furthermore, NFTs weren’t just beneficial to established artists, upcoming artists could also gain from creating NFTs for their work. Will Taylor Swift ever issue a music NFT?
For those who aren’t aware of what it is, an NFT, or a non-fungible token, is like a priceless work of art that cannot be replicated, only this art is a cryptocurrency token. It allows musicians to digitize their music, concert tickets, royalties, and even album covers so that people can purchase them as tokens. This article is here to provide you with insight into the development of NFT music from 2021.
Jacques Greene Sells Publishing Rights To His New Single With Foundation
In February 2021, “In perpetuity,” a single by LuckyMe artist Jacques Greene, was auctioned off on Foundation for 13 ETH. Before the purchase, the artist built hype by advertising a short teaser to his fans. The auction allowed the buyer to purchase royalties for the single. Whilst selling off the piece, he provided his fans with information about the work behind the album and its importance on the Foundation web page.
Catalog launched a platform in March 2021 that allowed artists to earn from not only the sales of their audio NFTs but also the resales. The innovative approach allowed artists to gain without losing the copyrights to their music and also prevented fans from being scammed. How? The fans have a direct line to purchase from the artists and the artists gain all the revenue from sales and a percentage from the reselling of their work.
More NFT Music Moments From 2021
Grimes earned millions of dollars from sales of digital artwork, and so did Steve Aoki from his collaboration with Antonio Tudisco. However, the moments didn’t stop there. The first LP NFT released by a band was also launched in 2021 by Kings of Leon. Amongst other moments, a concert was sold as an NFT film by Don Diablo in April 2021. It was a great year for pioneering various NFT ventures in the music industry.
In 2022, there have been quite a few NFT moments that are worth noting. The sale of Nas’s NFT collection, where he partnered with iconic DJ Royal. Coachella also released an NFT collection, which had over 10,000 NFTs spread out across three collections. Top 12 best music marketing companies.
Snoop Dog released an NFT mixtape and a partnership between Coachella and ODESZA resulted in an NFT which broke Solana’s sales record. Finally, popular NFT art Bored Ape joined in on the fun by featuring on the main stage at the Tomorrowland music festival in Belgium.
Conclusion: What Lies Ahead for Music and NFTs?
Apart from breaking records and giving artists a new online platform to earn, NFTs have not quite completed their role in the bidding music industry. Once NFTs are adopted into mainstream music, the industry will see significantly improved growth.
