Singer Vérité’s fan-first approach to Web3, music NFTs and community building
Many see music as the next frontier of blockchain adoption, and musician Vérité reveals what a fan-first approach to Web3 looks like.
Carving out a sustainable career as an independent musician is no easy feat. The competition is fierce, support can be hard to find, and earning a living without the financial help of a major record label is an uphill battle. Yet, for those who are able to build a loyal fanbase, the freedom of complete creative control can be liberating.
Technology has long proven to be a potential friend to those musicians willing to embrace it, and nonfungible tokens are the latest innovation that many tech-savvy artists have
According to the singer, NFTs, Web3, how its been marketed out to the masses is also wholly unpalatable really to non-tech-native fans. Instead, she offers the following advice:
I would more so recommend people to frame it as utilizing tools because its a weird market, and its hard to justify some of the scams and the negative aspects that can cause real harm to someone who isnt knowledgeable or educated on those things.
Offer an option, not a requirement
Instead of forcing fans to join her on-chain, Vrit instead focuses on building experiences with a Web3 element that is present but optional. She describes her approach as offering a door for fans to enter, one where blockchain functionalities can be unlocked to further enhance the fan experience but where fans will still enjoy the experience regardless of whether they open the door:
Do you need to jump the technological hurdle in order to have the experience, right? Or is it just a door? If its a door, you can talk about it because its not a burden.
For me, its really trying to consider, What is the experience that were offering, what are the actual viable use cases of blockchain technology that we can tack on that arent burdensome? she says.
One example is The Vrit Crewneck, a tech-enabled sweatshirt the singer dropped in late 2022 in collaboration with IYK, a company working with brands, artists and creators to develop phygital experiences. The sweatshirt has a near-field communication, or NFC, chip embedded in the sleeve, which can be scanned to access exclusive content and unlock an NFT representing a certificate of authenticity.
Vrit explains that fans who bought the sweatshirt received premier access to the next era of my records. Buyers could scan the chip with their phones and get early access to music and perks such as behind-the-scenes content. That was the main value proposition not a Web3 activation, right?
But the landing page also features an option to verify the garment, through which curious fans can receive their NFT.
Fans are at the center of it all
Between straight-up telling fans not to purchase her NFTs to offering them experiences where the Web3 option is an added bonus, Vrits fan-centric approach has undoubtedly played a significant role in her ability to push boundaries and see success in Web3 while still maintaining a loyal non-Web3 fanbase. Or, in her words, My fans come first, and I dont have fans just so that I can sell them shit all the time.
Regarding her long-term hope for the future of blockchain and music, Vrit says her vision is that we can demystify the black box of data that exists between artists and their fans, that is held by social platforms, ticketing companies, etc., and that blockchain actually does have the ability to make that information transparent so that artists can communicate directly to the people who support them and reward them in long-term scenarios.
If the hype is to be believed, this dream may one day come true. But based on Vrits experience at the forefront of it all, it seems the only way the music-Web3 revolution will be truly successful is if fans are placed at the center of it.
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Author: Jonathan DeYoung
