Universal Music Catches NFT Fever, Joins Bored Ape Metaverse Label

NFTs are catching on like wildfire as projects and creators alike continue to move the needle on innovation. Much of their popularity has to do with the Bored Ape Yacht Club, which is one of the hottest sets of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) available. The Bored Ape Yacht Club is a set of 10,000 bored ape digital collectibles that are built on the Ethereum blockchain as ERC-721 tokens.

Universal Music Group, the label behind pop stars like Taylor Swift, has joined forces with the Bored Ape Yacht Club for an emerging kind of NFT. The two brands have launched a new label called 10:22PM, under which they have formed Kingship, a metaverse brand under which they will make music. Sotheby’s recently auctioned more than 100 of the Bored Ape NFTs, with a final bid having surpassed $24 million.

 

NEWSFLASH: UMG’s next-gen label 10:22PM forms 𝐊𝐈𝐍𝐆𝐒𝐇𝐈𝐏, the First-Ever Group Consisting of NFT Characters from Bored Ape Yacht Club.🐒 pic.twitter.com/zMSAq4HI2Z

— Universal Music Group (@UMG) November 11, 2021

Universal is collaborating with NFT collector Jimmy McNeils for the Kingship line, which will feature four apes comprising a trio of Bored Apes and one Mutant Ape. These NFTs will feature music and “events in the metaverse,” according to the announcement. 10:22PM founder Celine Joshua stated,

“I started 10:22PM to push the boundaries of innovation in the music industry and with KINGSHIP, we’re literally inventing what’s possible in real time.”

 

nfts have brought the imaginative nature of childhood back to an entire generation of adults. magic is real again. enjoy this time.

— j1mmy.eth (@j1mmyeth) March 26, 2021

The rise of NFTs is bullish for the Ethereum price, which is the most widely used blockchain for building these tokens. Other blockchains also support the minting of NFTs, including Solana.

Music NFTs

While art has been a major use case for NFTs, the types of components digital tokens can hold is limited only by the creator’s imagination. Thanks to Universal Music, music non-fungible tokens have now been thrust into the limelight. But they aren’t the only ones focused on this category.

Animoca Brands, an Asia Pacific-based NFT and gaming company, has partnered with record label Cube Entertainment to feature K-pop NFTs in the metaverse. The tokens will spotlight K-pop stars, while the tokens will contain “digital sound sources, albums, portraits, and avatars” of the musical artists.

NFT Popularity Grows

Popular comedian Jimmy Fallon recently gave NFTs a ringing endorsement when he announced that he purchased his first piece of digital art on The Tonight Show.  Fallon similarly turned to the Bored Ape Yacht Club to purchase his NFT, where he recently tweeted that he is now looking at mutants, which is a collection of tens of thousands of mutant apes that are minted from the bored ape cohort.