NFT WTF!

This past January I began subscribing to the AVC blog written by Fred Wilson. On February 11, Fred posted this about Digital Art. That was the first I had heard of "NFT."

I joined Clubhouse a couple of weeks ago and while a few of the rooms have conversations that were of interest to me, many rooms seemed to be filled with "entrepreneurs" talking AT one another sound as though they are seeking validation for their ideas (to be honest with myself, I have could probably be accused of the same). But, throughout the days, as I opened up the app and scrolled through to see what people were talking about in rooms I consistently saw the letters "NFT". I ignored it the first time I saw it but then on day two I saw two rooms discussing "NFT" which then made me curious as to WTF "NFT" stood for.

In my search to find an answer, I've been falling down a rabbit hole. If you're not in the know, NFT stands for Non-fungible Tokens. Non-fungible means they can be exchanged one to one. NFT creations are one of a kind but since they are digital anyone can see then but only one person can own them. Oh oh, I might be losing you so, rather than me trying to explain something that I am barely understanding, I highly recommend that you read this article as a primer.

The digital artist beeple, referenced in the article you just read, explains NFT Digital art this way: "Anyone can go see the Mona Lisa and take pictures of it but that doesn't mean they own it." For further understanding and to watch an interview with beeple who just sold a piece of digital art through Christie's auction House click HERE.

The financial backend to NFT's is the blockchain. Blockchain is yet another concept that I am still trying to wrap my head around but here is an application I can sort of understand. British singer Imogen Heap made her music available through blockchain. My understanding is that anyone who wants to buy or play her music can now pay Imogen directly rather than funds having to go through a rights society or record company. You can watch an interview with Imogen HERE.

Read about blockchain music companies HERE.

Sitting down to write this post was inspired by the news that Kings Of Leon have released an NFT version of their new album.

So, what does this all mean? In all honesty (again), I am still trying to understand it but it seems to me that now anyone can create anything and there is a way to put that creation out on to the open market to find it's value. Once that creation has been purchased, the owner is now free to do with it whatever they want including putting it back out onto the market to find a new value for the item. As an artist yourself, think about the possibilities. You can now create scarcity and with that, mystique. To quote Bruce Allen (Bryan Adams' manager) "No mystique, big mistake."

One last link to check out. Click HERE for a simple but excellent illustrative explanation of NFTs.

This is a big topic, one I am still learning about. If you have any corrections or insights to what I have posted, I would love to hear from you.