As the NFT trend gains momentum, rapper Eminem jumps on this new way to make money. NFT stands for "non-fungible token" and it's a form of cryptocurrency that is very unique but with a basic concept. An NFT is an original digital entity such as a GIF, a collection of video clips, an audio clip, a JPG file of digital art, or even a Tweet.
Cryptocurrency experts say that NFTs mainly appeal to people who have a zeal for amassing collections such as art or trading cards. We all know that GIFs, JPEGs, video and audio clips are for the most part, free for the taking online so why would someone pay hundreds, thousands, or even millions for one of these digital entities?
The key lies in the word "original." All NFTs being offered up are backed by blockchain technology to assure the authentic quality of the digital piece. For example, Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey recently sold his first-ever Tweet for $2.9 million. To put it into context, a screenshot of Dorsey's first Tweet would be equal to a rare painting captured by a cell phone camera. All of the same information is available on the original and the copy but there's only one original and copies of the original are not valuable.
NFTs work as other forms cryptocurrency. You can spend them (where accepted, of course) and trade them with other NFT enthusiasts.
As of today, we don't know what Eminem will offer up to the NFT marketplace but some are imagining that it might have something to do with "Marshall Mathers LP" and "The Eminem Show", two of the rapper's albums which hit the top 100 best selling albums of all-time list.
Fans of both Eminem and NFTs were alerted to the rapper's interest in becoming an NFT creator when Eminem retweeted a Tweet from Nifty Gateway, the NFT marketplace. The rapper added nothing but a light bulb emoji to the retweet.
The original Tweet from Nifty Gateway stated, "Surprise. We're excited to announced that @Eminem is dropping this Sunday, April 25th on #NiftyGateway! Look out for more information and details to come."
Eminem would hardly be the first celebrity to join the NFT world. Mark Cuban of Shark Tank fame, actress Lindsay Lohan, heiress Paris Hilton, singers Grimes and The Weeknd have all expressed interest in NFTs.
On the week of March 27th, Saturday Night Live released a skit that offered a parody of one of Eminem's most well-known songs, "Without Me." The skit stars Pete Davidson, Jack Harlow, Chris Redd, and Kate McKinnon. McKinnon plays United States Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen who is visiting a classroom full of students as a special guest. When the professor asks if anyone has a final question, Davidson's hand shoots up and it's revealed and he is wearing a Robin (from Batman) costume, just like the one that Eminem wore in the "Without Me" video. He raps, assisted by Redd and Harlow, to explain NFTs to Yellen, the professor and the rest of the class.
The skit guessed on what kind of NFTs the rapper might sell but only time will tell.
Sources: Laptopmag.com, NME.com, beincrypto.com