INNOVATION
Overpriced? Eco-unfriendly? What can NFTs do for music?
Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) are collectible digital items, created and tracked using blockchain technology. In the early part of 2021, this technology made headlines around the world thanks to some stellar sales. Stuart Dredge reports
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HE MUSICIAN Grimes sold nearly $6m worth of NFTs on Nifty Gateway, one of the main NFT marketplace sites. Meanwhile, visual artist Beeple sold one of his collages as an NFT for $69.4m at auction house Christie’s. No wonder the music industry is interested in the potential to make more NFTs based on artists and music brands. However, the hype in early 2021 quickly sparked a backlash, with criticism of NFTs as being overpriced, as well as of their environmental impact due to the carbon costs involved in ‘minting’ (creating) and tracking them. That has not stopped the experimentation continuing however. In the second half of 2021 alone, producer Timbaland teased new music in a series of NFTs; TikTok has worked with some popular social-media stars on a line of NFTs; charity the Mercury
Raised In Space’s Shara Senderoff
MIDEM DIGITAL EDITION NEWS
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NOVEMBER 2021
