NFT’s Solana-based marketplace, Snowcrash, has announced that Sony Music and Universal Music Group have officially partnered with the platform. The record companies are currently in the midst of conquering the metaverse. Indeed, the Red Hot’s label, Warner Music Group has recently joined The Sandbox. In addition, WMG has announced a partnership with the game publisher Splinterlands. Today, it’s Bob Dylan and Miles Davis’ turn to put their bags on the blockchain.
Universal and Sony integrate the metaverse with NFT
Solana-based NFT marketplace Snowcrash will release NFT collections of Bob Dylan and Miles Davis this year. Indeed, the platform has announced a partnership with Universal Music Group and Sony, the two largest music labels in the world. Both labels are planning to integrate their artists more broadly into the metaverse.
Dennis Kooker, president of Sony’s digital business, said Sony Music is working with Snowcrash. The collaboration is intended to “develop a range of opportunities for (their) artists with a focus on providing accessible and user-friendly experiences for creators and fans.”
Michael Nash, executive vice president of Universal Music, echoes this sentiment. Indeed, he said that “(NFTs) allow (their) artists and labels to advance their cultural influence at the forefront of innovation.”
The music industry has been looking more broadly at non-fungible tokens lately. Metavers and NFTs are a way to further monetize content and create unique communities. Popular artists such as Nas and Snoop Dogg have made millions of dollars from NFT sales. Of course, Sony and Universal are not the first major music labels to venture into Web3. In fact, Warner Music Group recently announced a partnership with the play-to-earn game Splinterlands.
Oana Ruxandra, chief digital officer and executive vice president of business development at WMG, can confirm this. She said that creating NFT-based games has allowed WMG to “unlock new revenue streams for (their) artists who are interested in the space while elevating the role of fandom and community.”
Snowcrash, Solana’s new NFT marketplace
Bob Dylan is the joint major artist for both labels. UMG spent about $400 million on its catalog in 2020. Sony, meanwhile, bought his rights for more than $150 million last year.
Jesse Dylan, the son of rock’s Rimbaud, is the co-founder of the Snowcrash marketplace. This Solana-based marketplace takes its name from Neal Stephenson’s science fiction novel published in 1992. The novel also coined the term “Metaverse” at the time.
In a statement, Bob Dylan’s son, said that the current NFT market is just “the tip of the iceberg”. He opted for the Solana blockchain over the Ethereum network to launch the platform because he thinks it’s better for the environment.
Snowcrash will compete directly with existing NFT marketplaces on Solana. MagicEden and Solanart are the two leading ones in terms of exchange volume on the blockchain. However, the platform has some high-profile backers. Indeed, Snowcrash has a joint venture with cryptocurrency exchange FTX and is also a strategic partner of Solana Labs.
The non-fungible token (NFT) industry has seen unprecedented growth in the year 2021. In response to this phenomenon, more and more NFT projects have emerged. Today, record companies are part of the ecosystem. After visual art, music is at the center of this craze as blockchain could revolutionize the industry. One thing is for sure, music is a future sector for the metaverse and NFTs!
