Music is the most recent art form to be available as an NFT. NFT assets can be digital or physical, and blockchain technology is utilised to keep track of who owns what. The spike in NFT sales can be attributed in part to growing demand for crypto art and collectibles. More than 11 million NFT art sales were made last year. Christie’s and Sotheby’s each had their own NFT art auctions in 2021, which are attributed with propelling contemporary art sales to an all-time high. Given that NFTs may be configured to make royalty payments directly to musicians, with less reliance on intermediaries, it is no surprise that NFTs are poised to revolutionise the music industry.
NFTs allow musicians to keep composing and recording music while the blockchain acts as a record of immutable ownership. Tokenised music gives the artist back ownership, and the clear and automatic revenue agreements reduce the possibility of fraud. By removing the middlemen from the equation, lesser-known musicians might profit financially. Turning to NFTs also provides musicians with additional revenue streams, with options to sell other products directly to fans such as apparel, concert tickets, CDs, vinyl records, and so on.
With the irreversible record of ownership that comes with adopting NFTs, musicians may continue to release and share their work as usual, knowing that the royalties will be paid to them directly. Concert tickets may also be tokenized by embedding smart-contract enabled NFTs inside them, reducing the danger of fraudulent resales and black-market ticket dumps.
Another advantage of tokenized music is that it allows listeners to invest in a portion of song rights. Increased song replay entitles listeners to a portion of the royalties. For example, Opulous is developing NFT marketplaces for music in which fans and investors may exchange fractionalised ownership of specific tunes. Relationships between musicians and their fanbase are eventually reinforced, as listeners and fans may actively contribute to the advancement of their favourite artists’ careers. The democratisation of music through NFTs extends beyond the songs themselves.
King of Leon were the first band to release an album, When You See Yourself, as a series of NFTs in early 2021. Since then, they’ve been able to sell fans special album artwork as well as a limited edition version. In the form of NFTs, the Rolling Stones have also provided rare collectibles and one-of-a-kind fan experiences. Music venues and festivals have also benefited greatly from the NFT boom. Coachella, for example, just unveiled a series of “Coachella Collectibles,” allowing fans to purchase art prints, picture albums, digital collectibles, and even lifetime passes.
NFTs offer a variety of special possibilities for artists and music venues to engage with communities. Irreversibly transforming the music business for the better, for musicians and fans alike, by bringing fans together to establish stronger communities and providing direct contact between artists and listeners without the need for middlemen. While most of the attention has been focused on the showy, high-priced things and the big musicians who have jumped on the trend, the adoption of tokenized music will help the lesser-known artists the most, providing a more democratic and transparent world.
Read more:
- The Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival collaborates with FTX US
- Universal Music Group (UMG) announces partnership with Curio NFT platform
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