🎵 Metaproof Music

Hey friends, this is Sophia from 🎵 Metaproof Music, the weekly newsletter where we keep you informed on how the metaverse and web3 are changing the music industry.

Stay informed via our Twitter and Subscribe here to get your metaverse music news every Tuesday.

💌 A quick thanks to our friends…

Our friends at Player Zero are changing the music game by being a record label for the metaverse of Animated Virtual Artists (AVAs) that create hit songs like “Deeper” by Amari. Check them out today!

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📲 By the numbers

Many people today find new music through games. Here are some numbers from a Luminate study (Source):

• 28% of Gen Z music lovers have discovered new music through video games.

• Games remain a draw for music fans because of virtual concerts held on platforms such as Fortnite, set to reach 500 million registered users in 2023, and Robox, with its 58.8 million users a day.

• Some in-game concerts have drawn impressive figures: For Fortnite, 78 million for Ariana Grande, 50 million for Travis Scott (which earned him $20M), and 11 million for Marshmellow.

📫 News & trends

💯 Rihanna releasing her hit song BBHMM as an NFT

Fresh from her comeback via a Super Bowl halftime performance, pop and RnB superstar Rihanna is transforming her three Platinum-certified song “B*TCH Better Have My Money” into a music NFT via NFT platform another block. Deputy, the song’s co-producer, is releasing BBHMM as an NFT, giving fans a cut of his streaming royalties. The limited-edition Rihanna NFTs were unveiled Thursday, with about 300 NFTs in the collection overall and each costing 0.145 ETH (about $210).

What this development means: The NFT holders gain access to 0.0033% of the song’s streaming royalties, get provided with a superior service for streaming, and own a piece of a song in a fresh way that can completely change the way they feel about it - an “entirely new realm of connectivity,” Deputy said.

🐋 Def Jam just signed a bunch of NFT whales

Def Jam Recordings, one of the most influential record labels worldwide, has recently signed digital avatar music group The Whales, signaling a potential shift in how music and art are consumed in the future. The Whales are a virtual band that consists of 3D-animated avatars, and they perform live through augmented reality concerts. It’s speculated that The Whales will produce original music that will be performed live by their avatars, with music that’s likely a mix of AI-generated and human-created content.

Def Jam has also cut a deal with a group of cartoon whale characters created by web3 firm Wagmi Beach. It’s a tie-up between the label and The Catalina Whale Mixer, which Billboard notes is “a collection of 5,555 NFT avatars on the Solana blockchain.” The short of it: the record company just signed a bunch of digital collectibles to make music. Since this is still confusing to us, we’ll be on the lookout for further details!

🎤 How virtual entertainment is merging cutting-edge technology with legacy techniques

Sensorium Galaxy, the first metaverse built with VR as one of its foundations, is a virtual realm where users can experience new and immersive forms of entertainment, from music concerts to fashion shows, and more.

What sets Sensorium Galaxy apart is its use of AI-driven virtual beings that exist independently and allow for digital immortality. This means that even after a person's death, their digital avatar could continue to interact and engage with others in the metaverse. This AI-driven digital immortality has been used to resurrect the father of Surrealism, Salvador Dali, where users can talk to him about everything from his take on Zombie Formalism to current affairs.

🎻 The Hong Kong Philharmonic is embracing the metaverse

The Hong Kong Philharmonic is getting into the metaverse. In May 2023, under music director Jaap Van Zweden, the famed group will present the world premiere of The Metaverse Symphony by Hong Kong composer Elliot Leung, transforming Hong Kong’s Statue Square into a metaverse space for an immersive performance. The concert will be held on the platform Sandbox, with a live premiere at the Hong Kong Cultural Centre.

Virtual audience members, take note: The position that you take in the venue during the concert will determine which of the symphony’s four movements you experience at its first-ever Arts Tech program. “Down this path we are committed to exploring the world of music with innovative, creative use of technology,” noted Benedikt Fohr, chief executive of HK Phil. We can’t wait to hear the beautiful metaverse-inspired symphony in store!

🎮 How video games are changing the music industry landscape

The relationship between the music and gaming industries is a growing (and increasingly profitable) one, and the introduction of a stand-alone category for video game music at the Grammys is a milestone in the space. Virtual concerts themselves are becoming big business post-COVID, with Sony Music and Warner Music signing deals with Roblox to bring innovative music experiences to the game. See these current stats:

• The global market for virtual events is projected to exceed $617B by 2030, according to a.list, with spending on virtual reality experiences predicted to hit US$227B.

• By 2026, 25% of consumers will spend at least an hour each day in a metaverse space for work, shopping, or entertainment.

• Events from Coachella festival to IHeartRadio use these spots to test brand loyalty and new revenue sources, tying up with gaming firms like Fortnite, which has already raised $3B to expand its efforts to innovate within the metaverse.

🎉 Reinventing the party scene: How one project is changing the game for clubs and festivals

The festival and clubbing scene always has something up its sleeve, from electronic dance music festivals to underground clubs that promise an unforgettable party scene. Klubcoin, focused on the integration of cryptocurrency into the nightlife scene, sees itself clearly in five years to be widely accepted in the entire electronic music industry.

By then, it’s already with 1,000 of the biggest partners in its network and over 1 million electronic music fans who have adopted KlubCoin, installed the mobile app, and are regularly using KlubCoin as a method of payment and a way to get rewards while partying both in real life and in the metaverse. Speaking of the metaverse, the company is also set to announce something in this direction soon, so we’re staying tuned.

🎶 Halina Rice to perform in the metaverse at virtual venue The Blueprint tonight – watch for free

Electronic musician and AV producer Halina Rice has made her debut live performance in the metaverse, using 3D hologram technology and L-ISA Immersive Hyperreal Sound technology, on February 9. The performance was streamed in 360° and in spatial audio, and it was made free and accessible from anywhere in the world.

Rice has released two studio LP’s, 2017’s Redux and 2022’s Elision, and in 2020 launched the NEW WORLDS project where she offered an immersive AV environment for her listeners. More artists are embracing AI and the metaverse; even the BRIT Awards are hosting a VIP Party via Roblox, one marked by virtual artist meet-and-greets and other specially created activities for fans.

🏃‍♂️ Quick hits

• Web3 collective Hume’s Angel Baby has their single “Otherwise” dropping on major platforms soon, and pre-saves are critical as Angel treads toward becoming the world’s greatest metastar. Hume’s Twitter Spaces has more on the importance of pre-saves in music.

• The music video for virtual girl group MAVE:’s debut song “Pandora” surpassed 10 million views on YouTube just two weeks after its release, according to its agency Metaverse Entertainment. The group has an eccentric fictional storyline that centers around the members coming from the future and crash landing on Earth.

• Web3 startup Sound.xyz recently reached 10,000 unique collectors supporting the incredible artists on its platform.

• Grime legend Jammer teamed up with London-based start-up iiNDYVERSE to bring his basement to the metaverse. Find a QR code located at one of the spots in London and get rewarded with unreleased beats and footage, guided tours, events, digital content, and access to an auction where you can get one-off grime souvenirs.

• Coca Cola is launching Move, its limited flavor that focuses on music and creativity, in collaboration with Spanish born Grammy winner Rosalía, with the contrasting packaging design intended to display Rosalía’s personality through its pink and black colour scheme and candid doodles. Move will launch with a digital-first marketing campaign, including what’s referred to as a pioneering use of the metaverse.

💸 Finance buzz

• South Korean music company SM Entertainment, positioning itself firmly in the metaverse, has another high-profile investor in the form of Kakao Entertainment, which is acquiring a 9.05% stake in SM for $172.8M. (Source)

🗣️ Quote of the week

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All content on this newsletter is for informational purposes only and does not aim to serve as or replace expert investment advice.

If you are a startup building in the metaverse / web3 ecosystem and are raising capital, please reach out to Sfermion. Sfermion is an investment firm focused on accelerating the emergence of the metaverse.

Stay informed via our Twitter and Subscribe here to get your metaverse music news every Tuesday.