The music industry is notoriously centralized, with major record labels often controlling nearly every facet of an artist’s career — from which songs they are allowed to release to what percentage of the royalties they keep and more. While the rise of streaming platforms like SoundCloud and Spotify has helped democratize the industry and made it significantly easier to get one’s music in front of more ears, it’s still an uphill battle to build a dedicated fanbase and generate enough revenue to survive. Enter music NFTs. For those in the blockchain space, nonfungible tokens represent an opportunity for fans to …

Hackers hide malware in fake NFT game A phishing website purporting to offer a Pokémon-branded nonfungible token (NFT) card game has been spreading malware to unsuspecting gamers, a cybersecurity firm has warned. The website, which at the time of writing was still online, also claims to offer an NFT marketplace, with a link to buy tokens and even an area to stake NFTs all based on the popular Japanese media franchise. However, an arm of the South Korean cybersecurity firm AhnLab, warned the public about website on Jan. 6, noting that instead of downloading the game, users were actually downloading …

Global payments giant Mastercard is ramping up its exposure blockchain tech yet again, after announcing a Polygon-based accelerator program to help musicians build their careers via Web3. The firm announced the "Mastercard Artist Accelerator" program via a Jan. 7 blog post, outlining that from this spring, it will connect five emerging musicians from across the globe with mentors that will help them set up their brand in the Web3 music space. "The artists will gain exclusive access to special events, music releases and more. A first-of-its-kind curriculum will teach the artists how to build (and own) their brand through Web3 …

NFT music on Winamp Old school classic PC-friendly media player Winamp has rolled out support for Ethereum and Polygon-based music nonfungible tokens (NFTs) in the latest update of its desktop player. Winamp has been around since 1997 and was one of the most popular media players for PC users but has since been overtaken by Windows Media Player and Apple’s dominant iTunes. It has a reputation for supporting a wide range of media files, and in the latest update announcement on Dec. 7 the Winamp team noted that NFT support is officially live and ready to go. @winamp I have …

Electronic music is big business. According to a report by the International Music Summit, in 2021, the electronic music sector was valued at $6 billion dollars and that sector is poised for significant further growth. That $6 billion dollar figure marks a 71% increase from the industry’s valuation in 2020, which was understandably much smaller due to the effects of the pandemic. While revenue is down from where it was in 2019, barring further massive disruptions, the industry is on pace in 2022 to surpass its pre-pandemic heights. This should be great news for artists and music lovers alike, but …

The metaverse is the future, or so is the claim of many interacting with the industry — a claim that can be backed up by the amount of activity pouring into the Web3-metaverse domain. Engagement in the metaverse of 2022 is looking less like a Sims-esque video game and more like government agencies creating virtual offices to connect with future generations of clients or nations facing the existential threat of climate change using the metaverse to create digital versions of themselves. One way brands and organizations are using the metaverse is by hosting large-scale virtual events similar to those they …

Web3 is uprooting traditional entertainment industries with a new way of creating and engaging with digital content. The industry has already seen nonfungible tokens (NFTs) display the potential to transform how television scheduled programming can be created. Increased metaverse activity began challenging artists with new possibilities for performances and connectivity with their fans. All the use cases of Web3 technology upgrading the future of digital entertainment include one key component: ownership. Ownership is one of the defining characteristics that distinguishes Web3 activity from its predecessor. According to professionals in the industry it will also be a defining characteristic not only …

Musicians and executives alike have seen the power of Web3 tools such as nonfungible tokens (NFTs) to transform audiences into active communities with fewer barriers between artists and fans. Recently, the crypto-savvy Snoop Dogg partnered with country music stars Billy Ray Cyrus and the Avila Brothers to create an NFT experience that crossed genres and created new communities in the process. While Snoop may be a veteran in the space, many musicians find the Web3 world a whole new frontier. Cointelegraph spoke with Bernard Alexander, the head of IP at the company Animal Concerts which facilitated the aforementioned NFT collection, …

Nonfungible tokens (NFTs) are stepping into the next wave of Web3 with utility capabilities and community building at the forefront. A new collection from the Mint NFT marketplace and metaverse entertainment platform Animal Concerts does this across the musical genre spectrum, as well as blockchain networks. The collection, “A Hard Working Man,” features the crypto-savvy hip-hop star Snoop Dogg in combination with country music icons Billy Ray Cyrus and the Avila Brothers. The collection features highlight physi-digital experiences with digital artwork, as well as in-person concert perks. Unbothered, building, and trudging through the NFT bear market like: pic.twitter.com/nPNLNswYG8 — A …

An NFT event ticketing marketplace has teamed up with a major electronic music brand. SeatlabNFT says its goal is to help artists build a closer connection with fans — all while eliminating fraud and reducing the impact of scalping. The NFT ticketing and experience platform has partnered with Elrow Dubai to become their exclusive VIP ticketing provider. This means all VIP tickets will be issued as NFTs — with digital collectibles, airdropped rewards and on-site gamified interactive blockchain installations also on offer. Elrow is famous for carnival and circus-themed events where crowd interaction and immersiveness take center stage. Speaking to …

1. Hello! So you've launched The List and you're now working on Klubcoin. Can you tell us about these two projects? If we are going to use the language of music, The List would be the prelude to Klubcoin. The List is an NFT collection that serves as a bridge between IRL events, the Web3 world and Klubcoin — which is the first global cryptocurrency for all clubbers, festival goers and electronic music fans. These nonfungible tokens will serve as an entry ticket to two festivals per year organized by Klubcoin and The List. Not only that, owners will have …

In September 2021, enterprise blockchain and crypto solutions company Ripple launched the Ripple Creator Fund, a $250 million initiative committed to providing creators with the financial, creative, and technical support needed to create non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and other tokenization projects on the XRP Ledger. On Tuesday, Ripple disclosed the second wave of creators to receive funding for their NFT projects through Ripple’s Creator Fund. This round of funding was awarded to independent creators focused on building functional use cases in gaming and metaverse, as well as music and media on the XRP Ledger. This round of recipients included companies like …