Doja Cat is taking on the red-hot market for non-fungible tokens with the launch of her own curated NFT marketplace, Juicy Drops, and the debut of her first NFT collection this Friday.
Juicy Drops is a partnership with Intellectable Holdings, a new NFT-focused company founded by 20-year music executive Shannon Schlappi, who has worked at companies like Etix, Eventbrite and Doomtree Records. Juicy Drops aims to further gamify NFTs, which are digital collectibles bought and sold on the blockchain, by adding an extra incentive for buyers: Those who acquire all pieces of a collection will be granted exclusive access to limited drops.
“I’m helping to launch my NFT company so that I can actually own and control my art,” said Doja Cat. “I want to be able to make all decisions related to my creative vision and help other artists do the same. My ownership also allows me to direct how we can give back to causes that I truly believe in.”
Doja Cat marks Juicy Drops’ inaugural drop this Friday (April 23) with a collection of NFTs in collaboration with toy designer BOOMTRONIC. Inspired by her performance at last month’s Grammy Awards, where she was nominated for three awards including best new artist, the NFTs feature a spinning metallic Doja Cat graphic in a gilded frame, as well as imagery of her cat Raymus.
There are six color variations of the NFT, offered in two tiers of available quantities and price points. The “Metallic Tier” will offer only 10 of the most coveted “Platinum” NFTs, as well as 50 “Gold” and 100 “Silver.” The “Flavor Tier” will offer 500 each of NFTs named “Black Cherry,” “Watermelon” and “Plumb.”
Fans who collect all six variations unlock a rare “Mystery” NFT, which will not be offered for sale to the public. The drop will also include the chance to win perks like a VIP experience at Doja Cat’s upcoming 2022 tour.
Although Juicy Drops will be a destination NFT platform of its own, the established NFT marketplace OpenSea is serving as Doja Cat’s launch partner for Friday’s initial drop.
“Doja Cat is the first A-list female musician to drop artist-led NFTs on OpenSea, and we’re excited to welcome her to the platform,” said OpenSea co-founder and CTO Alex Atallah. “We believe that blockchain technology and NFTs open up a wide range of new opportunities for the music industry, and we can’t wait to see how her audience reacts to the content and unlockables.”
Going forward, Juicy Drops will work with music artists, athletes and other creatives on drops for their global fans. Juicy Drops accepts Ethereum only, so fans will need to have an Ethereum-based cryptocurrency wallet set up to participate. Although their claim is difficult to verify, the new partners say that the launch makes Doja Cat the first artist and woman to launch an NFT marketplace.
“It is an honor and a privilege to partner with Doja Cat on Juicy Drops. Our shared vision for the future of music and collectibles using a fully transparent distribution model that allows artists to maximize the potential of their creative capital is truly something special,” Schlappi added. “We want to partner with and empower current and legacy artists alike to take back control of their business by activating around NFTs with collectibles, videos, music, experiences, and event ticketing. The opportunities that NFTs represent in the music space are truly limitless and we are thrilled to be a part of that future.”
