With a recent surge in popularity, non-fungible tokens aka NFTs, have infiltrated the world of hip hop and are popping up left and right. Rappers from Eminem to Method Man to Benny the Butcher, as well as Jay-Z and Snoop Dogg, have all been involved with NFTs, and in some cases, have released NFT collections of their own.
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Recently, Lil Baby entered into a partnership with cryptocurrency payment platform, MoonPay, and debuted a Bored Ape Yacht Club NFT worth a reported $150,000 as his Twitter avatar. Bored Ape Yacht Club NFTs have become increasingly popular over the last couple of weeks, with NBA star Stephen Curry boasting one as his Twitter avi, and Kylie Jenner's attempts to purchase a pink Bored Ape of her own.
The latest celebrity to join the Bored Ape Yacht Club NFT trend is Post Malone.
In a recent Tik Tok by MoonPay, Malone purchases two Bored Apes for a combined 160 ETH. At the time of the purchase 1 ETH was the equivalent of $4,689.03, meaning Post dropped nearly $735,000 on the pair of cartoon ape NFTs. However, much like Tik Tok user @mona_vinci pointed out when Lil Baby debuted his Bored Ape, Malone's purchase is all part of a new partnership with MoonPay.
@moonpayhq Reply to @user9109977068837 #posty #postmalone #nft #bayc #crypto #cryptowallet @postmalone ♬ Space Cadet - Metro Boomin - ㅤ
The new music video for Malone's hit single with The Weeknd, "One Right Now" starts off with the "Rockstar" singer purchasing a Bored Ape through MoonPay. Dressed like Tony Montana, and sitting in a back room that gives serious mafia vibes, Malone purchases the NFT with enough grace and seriousness to make Don Vito Corleone proud.
It's an interesting and modern example of product placement, and with the NFT market and cryptocurrency landscape slowly encompassing the rap world, Malone's $735K purchase is a potential sign of what's to come.
Are you into NFTs? Let us know in the comments.