Music NFTs stand out amongst a sea of other NFT categories, particularly profile picture (PFP) NFTs which dominate the current landscape. Music NFTs are essentially collectible audio files as music releases (like an album), but can take several other forms, from royalties to event tickets.
Many NFT collectors, analysts and influencers in the NFT space have suggested that Music NFTs present a major opportunity, yet are still flying under the radar.
There have been many different platforms experimenting with NFT music creation, royalty sharing, production, and music releases as NFTs. In an industry where the top one percent of artists get 90 percent of the total amount of streams, music artists — especially those with smaller audiences — have looked for alternative revenue sources in NFTs.
Collectibles are perhaps the simplest way that music NFTs can be brought to fans. With collectibles, artists own all of the rights to their music, but can add additional perks for their collectors — like music stems, real-world experiences, and art. Since streaming platforms only bring in a few thousand dollars per million streams (Spotify pays as little as $3,000 for a million streams), this offers a viable alternative for artists who want to build their community of fans with music NFTs.
It also allows them to monetize their work immediately, instead of waiting for royalties to come, or a label to publish and promote their work.
The music NFT industry has already come along way since Kings of Leon released the first-ever album NFT in 2021. There are a variety of collectible Discord music NFT marketplaces available, each with their own niche.
One of the most popular marketplaces. Sound’s NFTs are sold in editions, and there is a primary and secondary marketplace. Releases on Sound can be singles, albums, EPs, or even mixes — as seen by Snoop Dogg’s first Death Row Records NFT release on Sound. After minting, editions can be purchased on OpenSea.
Collectors who mint a project are featured as audience members, and the NFT is tied to the ability to make comments on the NFT (a direct way to connect with the artist), similar to SoundCloud. One commenter will receive the “golden egg” — a 1-of-1 edition of the release — by commenting in a randomly hidden timestamp on the song.
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