Musical guest Kings of Leon will perform on January 18, 2017.
Andrew Lipovsky | NBC | NBCUniversal | Getty images
American rock band Kings of Leon is getting furious about non-replaceable tokens, commonly known as NFTs.
The group announced that they will be offering their latest album, “When You See Yourself”, in the form of an NFT, making it one of the first bands to do so. Kings of Leon is offering its album pack that includes a vinyl and digital download for a $ 50 token. It will be released Friday on YellowHeart (a ticket and music NFT platform) and will be open for two weeks from noon ET. After that period of two weeks, no more is made.
Kings of Leon also offers more exclusive items as part of a series called “NFT Yourself”. People can bid on one of six “golden ticket” experiences, which offer fans four front row seats to the show of their choice on any lifetime tour.
Crypto collectibles have become extremely popular in recent times. Ownership of these assets is recorded on a blockchain – a digital ledger similar to the networks that support bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. But unlike most virtual currencies, you cannot exchange one NFT for another in the same way you would with dollars or gold bars. Each NFT is unique and acts as a collector’s item that cannot be duplicated, making them rare in design.
In the case of music, advocates suggest that NFTs could help performers grappling with digital piracy, low streaming royalty rates, and a lack of tour revenue from the last year of the Covid-19 pandemic restrictions.
– CNBC’s Ryan Browne contributed to this report.
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