Web3 is Democratizing New York Fashion Week
Web3 is Democratizing New York Fashion Week
1. Web3 Offers Anyone a Key to the World of Fashion
The inherently democratizing nature of Web3 is an interesting force in the Fashion industry which is traditionally difficult to access. Still, the industry continues to be a first mover in the world of Web3. This year’s New York Fashion Week will showcase a number of activations that lean into Web3 and allow more access.
The Keys to NYFW NFT collection allows anyone with a web3 wallet the ability to participate in NYFW.
Upon purchasing the Keys to NYFW (available from Keys.NYFW.com), customers can select either the “IRL NYFW Experience” button to attend a physical event, or the “Designer Keepsake” option to obtain a limited-edition physical product from the brand. Payments are available via ETH, Afterpay (which partnered on the experience), or credit card.
Alongside the show, Puma will reveal a digital experience that integrates interactive components to engage a global audience and further establish Puma in the Web3 space after several collaborative projects in the first half of the year.
It’s likely that more people than ever before will be able to experience at least some version of this year’s New York Fashion Week.
2. The Interoperable Metaverse Begins to Form
Ernest Cline’s vision in Ready Player One is built on the foundation for what many believe ‘the metaverse’ could one day look like. That is, a multitude of immersive experiences that players can freely move between, bringing their consistent identity (avatar) to each.
Many metaverse platforms are promising this, but actual progress towards that vision is starting to be made. Leading the way is The Sandbox (a popular decentralized metaverse platform). They have built 140,000 avatars tied directly to NFTs of the top projects such as Bored Ape Yacht Club and Cool Cats.
Essentially, The Sandbox created avatars that match the traits of a given NFT. Once a player proves they own that NFT, the avatar is unlocked for them to play.
As more platforms adopt this functionality, the same player will be able to maintain consistent identity across the metaverse.
And the momentum continues as interoperable avatar platform, Ready Player Me, raises $56M in Series B.
3. Bored Apes Attend the VMAs
Music continues to embrace (or be invaded) by the ‘metaverse’. At last night’s 2022 VMA’s, two of the biggest names in the both the music industry and Bored Ape Yacht Club community performed ‘live’ from The Otherside Metaverse.
The performance received reactions across the board that were generally divided down the line of ‘NFT fan’ or ‘NFT hater’.
Either way, it was not the only ‘metaverse first’ of the night. BLACKPINK took home the very first ‘Metaverse Performance of the Year’ award for their concert in PUBG Mobile:
And the competition was steep, including Justin Bieber, BTS, Charlie XCX and Twenty One Pilots.
4. Turns Out AI Influencers Aren’t Entirely Risk-Free
And in an update from last week’s FTR Newsletter, we now have seen the backlash an AI influencer can cause:
A.I. Rapper FN Meka was dropped by Capitol Music Group after being called out by activist group, Industry Blackout who described the project as a:
“direct insult to the Black community and our culture” by being an “amalgamation of gross stereotypes [and] appropriative mannerisms that derive from Black artists, complete with slurs infused in lyrics.”
CMG had signed FN Meka and who released a single called Florida Water. Similar to actual influencers, brands will need to do their research into the cultural context an AI influencer is debuting into and what actually drives them before making a signing.
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