The Chainsmokers may be best known for their catchy tunes “Closer” and “Paris,” but they have also created a place for themselves in the list of Web3 enthusiasts.
With the release of their new album, So Far So Good, coming up next week, the pair is ramping up promotion in an unconventional way: donating a share of record proceeds to their fans, for free. The record will contain a 5,000 NFT drop to allow fans to share in 1% of streaming royalties.
This giveaway will take place via the blockchain on the music NFT market Royal, where the Chainsmokers — Alex Pall and Drew Taggart — will issue 5,000 limited digital products (or LDAs, Royal’s name for NFTs), signifying 1% of the album’s master streaming revenues. Fans who purchase these NFTs will also get entry to The Chainsmokers’ personal Discord channel, including unique material and other perks.
This NFT drop is by far the most visible example of musicians utilizing NFTs to distribute royalties to fans. While artists like Nas and Diplo have released royalty-generating NFTs tied to certain tracks, it’s the first time a band has done so for a full album and that too, for free.
“With this new album, we strive to go from broad to depth with our supporters. Several musicians have done this previously, but never for free,” the duo claims in a statement.
“It was essential for us to do it this way because it’s not about us profiting off some new tech; it’s about trying to connect more intensely with you and embracing a breakthrough innovation in an effective manner that certainly shows what’s possible as we head towards a Web3 world,” the Chainsmokers explained.
The album releases on Friday, May 13, 2022, following the NFT drop on Tuesday, May 17, 2022, starting at 18:00 EST, with 4,000 tokens to be made available for The Chainsmokers VIP list in phase one. An extra 700 tokens will be released in a phase two release for The Chainsmokers VIP list and public access fans at 20:00 EST. No cryptocurrency is necessary for fans to acquire one of the Non-Fungible Token (NFTs), and Royal will cover all associated expenses.
Fans who have obtained the NFTs will be free to sell these on the secondary market if they so wish. The Chainsmokers would not profit from these secondary sales.
On the other hand, Royal has made quite a stir in the music industry since its inception last summer. The startup, co-founded by artist and producer 3LAU (Justin Blau), allows artists to sell partial music rights in the form of NFTs.
Blau’s platform received $55 million in funding led by Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) in November 2021. In addition, it appointed a high-profile Head of Global Artist & Label Partnerships this month: Darya Pourshasb, Spotify’s previous Director, Premium Content Strategy.
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