Metaverse shines during MTV Video Music Award

The theme “Metaverse” kept popping up during the recent yearly Video Music Awards (VMAs), hosted by television broadcaster MTV. This term refers to the internet as a digital space where 3D worlds are created to connect people, often using virtual or augmented reality (VR and AR). This year marked the first time a prize was issued for the “Best Metaverse Performance” category. The South Korean girl band Blackpink won the prize, and beat out superstars like Justin Bieber and Ariana Grande.

Next to the new prize category, special performances by rappers Eminem and Snoop Dogg were given. Both artists performed in the game called “Otherside” by Yuga Labs. Yuga Labs is most well known for the designing of one of the most valuable NFT collections of this moment: Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC). During the digital performance, both rappers journeyed through the metaverse, taking on the character of the Bored Ape that they own.

NFT’s in the music industry

Blockchain and NFTs are an ever more present phenomenon in the music industry. Earlier this year, rockband Muse launched a complete NFT album, making NFTs the newest format to appear in the music charts. NFTs give artists the possibility to gain more control over their music. Taylor Swift already showed the demand for this by recording an album by herself, separate of her producer Braun, back in 2019. She called on her fans to stream this version of the album, resulting in more streams in one week than her producer’s version streamed in the entire year. These examples show that the metaverse and NFT’s are becoming tangible and offers added value to artists.

Image: Unsplash/Marcela Laskoski