Headline: Megadeath has a new NFT
Body: I have a shocker here, so, brace for impact. I have always been kind of a geek. Shocking, I know, sorry. As such, I was never a fan of Megadeath in High School, College or later, though I knew many who were. Unbelievably, a few of these young men turned out to be pastors or other religious leaders. The point being that Megadeath has always been about its art, not pleasing everybody. And now, they have their own NFTs for sale. So, let’s take a look at how they profit, and what the NFTs mean to the community.
The Band Megadeath has their own NFT.
Like I said earlier, I am no a specialist in this kind of music. But, Megadeath is apparently a “thrash metal” band and they have a digital mascot, a Mr. Vic Rattlehead. The NFTs in question seem to be several different images of Mr. Rattlehead sometimes paired with a special real-world experience with the band. According to an official webpage,“This isn’t just a fan club; it’s a community owned by YOU.” Previously, concert tickets were released as NFTs, and these got a great response. In 2021, the band offered an NFT called the “Megadeath Genesis token” which went for just under $19,000. So, things appear to be getting quite serious.
Megadeath is not the only heavy-metal band doing this. Avenged Sevenfold have also done similar things, and create with Megadeath some sort of online mutual appreciation society. They even joined the metaverse where they purchased a “land” where fans can interact and share related media and original art. Other similar bands like Slipknot have also joined the NFT craze.
So, is this really a big deal?
Yes, and getting bigger all the time. For a while now, NFTs have been offered by sports memorabilia merchandisers, and the combined revenues are over $2.5 Billion. It is estimated that within 10 years, this total will likely reach over $200 Billion. This IS a big deal!!!
So, NFT’s, are there good ways to get around the problems?
In researching for this post, I think I happened upon a thought-provoking model. A gentleman in Vegas got access to an enormous collection of rock and roll photos, both photos of famous shows, and some very candid photos of famous musicians. They partnered with a business called MADworld, and offer these NFTs as physical slides along with Certificates of Authenticity and most importantly, high quality digital images. These high-quality images help to control the copying of images because images are difficult to keep crisp, when they are just copied. (Think of a photocopy here. The first copy is pretty clear and all the lettering is readable. But by the time you have taken a copy of a copy, details begin to disappear, and some of the writing is less visible or difficult to discern. The high-quality digital copy can be compared to the slide, and the very smallest details should be visible on both.)
The Verdict
As before, it would appear that the verdict has to be that NFTs, despite their failings, are here to stay. To date, there are even online discussions of how to buy, care for and sell NFTs. Given that this infrastructure is already in existence, I have little doubt that the NFT craze will continue and probably get even bigger. Perhaps in the future, some cars will come packaged with their very own NFT that gives the owner the right to visit the factory where their automobile was born, or at least a discount on gas. The success of the NFT will really be measured when looking at whether the customers remain brand-loyal with their second purchases and beyond. I am intrigued to find out.
REFERENCES:
Thrash-metal band Megadeth launches NFT collection and metaverse community (cointelegraph.com)
Megadeth Completes First NFT Sale in Heavy Metal Music (yahoo.com)
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