Last year, NFTs brought in more money for Steve Aoki than a decade of music royalties and advances combined. Last year, the DJ famously sold his “hairy” NFT on Nifty Gateway for $888,888.88. He’s moving away from NFTs and towards his own metaverse, where citizens can watch virtual performances.
The singer, who is one of the most paid DJs in the world, discussed his entry into NFTs during a private Gala Music event on February 10 in Inglewood, California. In it, he claims that performing as a DJ accounts for the majority of his income, while music royalties from his records “amount to very little.”
“If I was to really break down, OK in the 10 years I’ve been making music, six albums, and you culminate all those advances, what I did in one drop last year in NFTs I made more money,” he said.
The DJ’s sale of his “hairy” collection for a hefty $888,888.88 on Nifty Gateway last year made it one of the most expensive digital pieces of art ever sold. In addition, he owns a number of NFTs from the legendary Bored Ape Yacht Club collection.
According to a video recording of the event, Aoki stated that NFTs, which are often digital works of art linked to blockchain technology, are changing the music industry by introducing “scarcity” and a “collectible mindset,” similar to Pokemon cards or limited-edition shoes.
NFTs, as previously reported by Insider, have the potential to upend the music industry by providing artists with a revenue stream that outweighs the marginal income from streaming services. Halsey, Shawn Mendes, and Kings of Leon are among the artists who have ventured into the world of digital collectibles.
“As music NFTs become more of a part of how we integrate and support artists, the labels will have to do more than just add the song on a playlist,” Aoki said at the forum.
He’s also embraced the crypto realm outside of NFTs. He has a Yat, for example, which is a string of emojis that functions as a person’s unique URL. He’s also constructing his own metaverse, dubbed the Aok1verse. Citizens of this new metaverse, according to the website, will have access to digital collectibles and virtual performances, among other benefits.
NFTs, according to crypto fanatics, might be the foundation for Web3, the blockchain-based successor to Web 2.0, and the metaverse, a virtual universe. Web3 will allow consumers, rather than large tech companies, to own the next generation of the internet, the artist told the Gala Music audience. That feature has been one of Web3’s biggest selling points.