Universal Music Group, or UMG, has been a top record label for a long time, having had a significant impact on music from both a business and a listening standpoint.
Universal welcomed a new artist to their roster on Thursday, and it’s a bit of a surprise. Most people are familiar with Gorillaz, a band whose aesthetic and style was virtually an NFT before we ever knew what it was.
Kingship, UMG’s first NFT band, has been announced.
Kingship is a band made up of four members; all of them are digital. The group will be an NFT rather than having a real identity. This could be the beginning of a new trend that alters our perceptions of artists.
The NFT apes that makeup Kingship
A Mutant Ape and three Bored Ape characters, including rare Golden Fur and Bluebeam Apes, make up Kingship.
Owners of the Bored Ape and Mutant will get first access to the group’s NFT releases and experiences, as well as an influence in the narrative selection.
10:22PM will develop storylines for the apes and, eventually, sell NFT performances, allowing fans to purchase one-of-a-kind musical experiences.
New trend in NFT ownership
The group represents a “new area of NFT ownership” in addition to concerts in the metaverse, according to Jimmy McNeils, the owner of the four NFTs who makes up the group.
For some owners, NFTs have already paid off handsomely. The Bored Ape Yacht Club is a collection of tens of thousands of unique digital paintings depicting bored apes.
One sold for $3.4 million at the end of October. According to OpenSea, an online NFT marketplace, two of the NFTs in Kingship are currently valued at over $125,000.
When the first performance or musical NFT is presented to potential fans is unknown.
Universal Music Group did not react to questions regarding a timeline right away.
Image courtesy of Cointelegraph News/YouTube