Celebrities from music, entertainment, sports, and internet media are now joining the NFT bandwagon. Since last year, many high-profile celebrities have bought Bored Ape, participated, collaborated, or invested in various NFT projects.
With the sudden yet gradual celebrity wave of NFTs, the fans are also adopting the digital craze. Here’s everything you need to know.
NFTs or non-fungible tokens are irreplaceable digital assets that give proof of ownership to the buyer. The concept of NFTs isn’t new; rather it has always existed in various physical forms. Before only rich people could own a certain physical asset, which is why common people really didn’t care about ownership.
With NFTs, common people realized the importance of ownership and rarity. Now, millions of people can own their favorite artwork or any other content in digital form. This digital craze has continued for years but recently peaked when more and more people realized the value of the technology.
Celebrities join the digital craze
With NFT floor prices peaking high, celebrities from various industries also showed interest in digital collectibles. The most famous example is Snoop Dogg, who is one of the earliest celebrities to buy NFTs and become a proper NFT influencer. He had been doing various collaborations with NFT projects.
Similarly, sports players like Neymar Jr, Dez Bryant, Serena Williams, Steph Curry, Dillian Whyte, and many more have also bought NFTs and dropped their own featured digital collectibles in partnership with NFT brands.
The Bored Ape craze
Bored Ape Yacht Club, the highest-selling NFT collection has become a kind of digital collectible for the elite. Almost every high-profile figure or rich person owns a Bored Ape.
The Bored Ape collection has now attracted celebrities to the NFT platform. Almost every famous figure you follow will own at least one Bored Ape in their portfolio.
The most recent example is the famous Tennis player Serena Williams and football player Neymar showing off their Bored Apes on their official accounts. Snoop Dogg and his son also own Bored Apes which have become their signature avatars in the NFT community.
Recently, Eminem and Snoop Dogg dropped a collaboration MV featuring their Bored Apes and other NFTs. TIMBALAND showed off his Bored Ape, also known as Congo, in a new 3D music video.
Post Malone, Stephen Curry, Jimmy Fallon, and Paris Hilton have also Bored Apes as their avatars.
In other words, the Bored Ape has now become a status symbol for celebrities and billionaires. Various brands are also catering to the Bored Ape audience by releasing exclusive products and digital features.
Tag Heuer released a new smartwatch with an NFT feature; individuals can show off their Bored Apes and other NFTs on their watches.
The bored Ape is the elite status symbol but many celebrities are now moving toward releasing their own NFT collections for fans.
Exclusive Celebrity NFT drops & partnerships
Celebrities are the most high-profiled individuals due to their huge fanbase. Dedicated fans usually pay much attention to whatever their favorite star wears or watches. This is why many brands across the world send exclusive products or partner up to attract consumers.
The same culture is being adopted in the NFT space as well. Many NFT companies or creators have been partnering with celebrities to showcase their artwork with exclusive features, and celebrities also benefit from it.
Madonna partnered with the sensational artist, Beeple, to drop her NFT collection called “Mother of Creation.” Snoop Dogg dropped unreleased tracks on Baked Nation, which brought many of his listeners to the NFT space. Similarly, Katy Perry collaborated with Theta Marketplace to drop featured NFTs for fans.
Other than that, celebrities also see NFTs as a way to showcase their work in digital form. Melanie Martinez paid homage to her childhood stuffed toys by releasing their moveable NFTs, Johnny Depp introduced “Never Fear Truth” NFTs of his hand-painted self-portraits and his friends’ portraits, which surged high in sales when he won the defamation case.
NBA Top Shot is currently the biggest marketplace with each NFT worth almost a million dollars. The marketplace features exclusive shots of famous basketball players that fans can own as a digital collectible.
Many NFT companies seem to be joining this bandwagon of getting celebrities as their partners. Recently, Doodles announced Pharrell Williams as their chief brand officer. The recent NFT NYC 2022 also brought various high-profile figures as well.
Christiano Ronaldo is also entering the NFT space in collaboration with Binance NFT. In a video message, he shared that he partnered with Binance to drop his own series of NFT collections coming soon.
Final words
The NFT space seems to be growing day by day as celebrities continue to adopt this new technology. Many Web3 and NFT brands believe attracting entertainment and sports figures to digital collectibles will most likely bring more people and increase the worth of the industry as a whole.
However, a big challenge awaits their way. Many celebrities are still reluctant with adopting NFTs because their fans are completely against them.
The biggest example is BTS. HYBE, the management company behind BTS hinted at the release of digital collectibles of BTS members. This angered fans and they openly criticized the company for using artists to make money. This shows that many fans are still not ready to adapt to new technologies.
Still, some celebrities are very adamant about adopting modern technologies, so fans are conditioned to show interest. As more and more celebrities enter the NFT space, the industry is most likely to grow as well.
