Features / 303 posts found
Snoop Dogg and Billy Ray Cyrus’ New Release Asks You to Compete for NFTs
Few artists have achieved staying power at Snoop Dogg’s level. A name synonymous with rap music and hip-hop culture, the LBC legend has remained at the forefront of trends far beyond the original scope of his career. That, of course, now includes trends in the metaverse. A prominent player in the NFT space, Snoop is considered a seasoned veteran of blockchain-based music endeavors. With major feats like a multi-million dollar ($45 million by some accounts) collection with Gala Music, numerous NFT mixtapes, and the reconstruction of iconic Death Row Records as a Web3 label under his belt, when Snoop makes […]
Here’s How the NFT Community Is Reacting to the FTX Crash
Binance’s impending purchase of struggling crypto exchange FTX has officially fallen through. Now what? Without a support system to help FTX through its current liquidity crunch, it’s unclear what will become of the second-largest crypto exchange, not to mention the funds of its more than one million users. But perhaps this was predictable. After all, adjacent to the original authoritative announcements made via Twitter by both FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried and Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao, the nonbinding letter of intent (LOI) signed by Binance was relatively flimsy from the start. And this LOI ultimately acted as both the entry and […]
The Fall of FTX Has Revealed Web3’s True Colors
For many, the crypto world feels like it’s in shambles. The high drama between rival exchanges Binance and FTX has set the stage on which it played out fully ablaze. Over the last few days, repeated revelations have wiped out billions in funds, sent the Web3 community reeling, and irrevocably altered the future of crypto and NFTs. It was the last thing the space needed. The dramatic fall from grace came during a community-wide effort to push back against OpenSea’s recent announcement that it would likely stop enforcing creator royalties for existing collections as of December 8. On top of […]
Blockchain Is Redefining What It Means to Be a Fan
After the release of Beyoncé’s 2016 audiovisual album Lemonade, fans of the singer went into a frenzy. While many were left in awe of the artist’s project, others felt sympathy for the superstar, who, throughout the album, chronicled her husband Jay-Z’s infidelity. Unfaithful partners are not unique to stardom, but a specific subset of Beyoncé’s core fans, often referred to as the “Beyhive,” launched themselves on a hunt for Jay-Z alleged lover. Eventually, the Beyhive zoned in on the rapper’s former business partner, Rachel Roy, and launched a deluge of social media insults and threats on her and her daughter. […]
Fun Fact: NFTs and Art Are Two Entirely Different Things
Not to sound like a non-fungible naysayer, but NFTs aren’t actually art. That’s the honest truth of the matter. While art is undoubtedly one of the most robust use-cases for NFTs, there’s a reason that legacy art institutions and even the powers that be at Wikipedia continue to dispel the correlation between NFTs and art. I’m not saying that the common criticisms of NFTs hold any merit — we all know that the “right-click save” argument is bogus. But there’s much more to be understood about the burgeoning blockchain-based innovation happening in the NFT space than can be pigeonholed into […]
Why Game Industry Veterans Are Entering Web3 In Droves
In 2018, millions of people were unwittingly onboarded to Web3. This mass onboarding happened thanks to Axie Infinity, a pay-to-earn (P2E) video game that lets users earn real cash. Although an array of (very vocal) detractors continue to staunchly oppose blockchain gaming, the space has grown considerably in recent years. In fact, from 2021 to 2022 alone, blockchain gaming usage increased by 2000 percent, attracting scores of experienced Web2 game developers and executives in the process. But why? What exactly makes the promise of Web3 game development so alluring? We spoke to Web3 builders who made the jump from traditional […]
A Complete Rundown of the Art Gobblers Allow List Controversy
Art Gobblers is a truly unique NFT project. The collaborative result of Rick and Morty’s Justin Roiland and Web3 investment firm Paradigm, Art Gobblers is made up of 2,000 NFTs that “gobble” art — drawings made by people in the project community that can be minted as 1 of 1 NFTs themselves and displayed in the Art Gobbler’s “belly gallery.” Along with some funky “Goo” tokenomics that influence how much art users can create and a burn dynamic that incentivizes community collaboration, the project aims to become a self-contained ecosystem of artists, collectors, and traders that lasts for years to […]
Hackers Exploit Apps To Steal Digital Assets. Here’s How To Stop Them.
Scams like rug pulls are widely discussed in the NFT space. However, there are other ways that users can be exploited that deserve attention. Smart contracts that run on blockchain technology are typically considered more difficult to take advantage of, as they have a smaller attack surface than web applications. However, since we need a web application to access smart contract functionality, security issues in these areas could lead to an exploit. Put plainly, to access your NFTs and crypto, you still need to go on the internet and buy or sell these assets via a website like any other. […]
Next Up: Five Ones to Watch in November 2022
In 2021, a new creator economy was born on the blockchain. Since NFTs took center stage, artists have achieved NFT superstardom, billion-dollar brands have been forged in just a few months, and many lives have been utterly transformed time and again. Yet, the most inspiring thing about the NFT space is the number of artists of all creeds and mediums who have found community and support by embracing this technology. In keeping with our mission to empower creators, we present Next Up — our monthly franchise dedicated to showcasing rising artists. In our November edition, we’ve curated a list of […]
Visionary Abstract Artist Hilma af Klint to Be Immortalized on the Blockchain
In Web3, everyone is building towards the future. As an internet ecosystem centered around cryptography and decentralization, the blockchain has become a hotbed for far-sighted innovation. The NFT space itself, which exists at the intersection of finance, art, and tech, is proof enough of this fact. A great abundance of digital and generative artists exist in proximity to Web3, and their efforts to curate blockchain-based bodies of works are both future-oriented and a logical next step for careers in art. But to those established, revered, and often older artists beyond the reach of the blockchain, NFTs can feel elusive, volatile, […]