Ashanti aims to bring women to Web3, says “ownership is important” at NFT music meetup

The billion-dollar music industry is undergoing a major transition as artists begin to understand the potential of owning their work through non-fungible tokens (NFTs). Ashanti, the multi-platinum-selling singer, actor and co-founder of EQ Exchange – a female-led Web3 platform – recently shed light on this during a Cotton Candy Records meeting held on June 20 in New York.

Ashanti spoke in a panel with Janice Taylor, founder and CEO of EQ Exchange, and went into detail about how important ownership is for creators today. Based on personal experience, Ashanti said:

“It is incredibly important to continue the story that owning is the way to go. Who wants to wake up and empty their heart, blood, sweat and tears in a project and have someone else next to you who reaps all the benefits while doing all the work? That was how my contract was set up many years ago, but now I have the right 20 years later to go in and record again and own new masters of my first album. “

Why it is important for creators to own

Ashanti told the Cointelegraph that the process of making an album before Web3 and the launch of music NFTs was very “disappointing”, noting that an artist would sign a record deal and make an album that would then sell for around $ 15. “Of that amount, an artist would only receive around $ 0.38, which was top notch,” said the R&B legend. When Ashanti began to realize that this was a common process, she began to look for alternative ways to own her intangible property.

On March 25, 2022, almost 20 years after the release of her debut album, Ashanti entered into a partnership with EQ Exchange, making her the first black female artist to co-found a Web3 company. Following this, Ashanti released an NFT collection with EQ Exchange on April 6, 2022, which was launched on the artist’s 20th anniversary for her first album titled Ashanti. According to Taylor, Ashanti sold his first five NFTs in minutes. Although impressive, Ashanti noted that the underlying message behind music NFTs is “that owning your work is so important.”

In addition to ownership, Ashanti explained that her NFT collection is meant to benefit her fans in a number of ways. “Fans will have exclusive rights to hear my music first, which means they can also own the music. They will also receive percentages of royalties for new records, along with tickets to shows, vacations and access to limited items, she said.

Women in Web3 aim to inspire

Ashanti further noted that she is aiming for her NFT collection and the role in the Web3 site to inspire greater female engagement. This is incredibly important, as the media company EWG Unlimited and The Female Quotient recently found out that men continue to dominate Web3. According to the report, only 16% of the creators in Web3 identify themselves as women, which has led to inherent male bias. With this in mind, Ashanti said:

“I never thought in a million years that I would be in the Web3 room. But diving into this sector as an independent artist was necessary. The Cotton Candy Records meeting is the first crypto-focused event I have spoken at, and I hope to do more of these to continue to inspire other female creators and women of color to get involved. “

Taylor added that education and events are crucial to bringing more women into the Web3 site, noting that she was initially asked to hire a crypto-native male co-founder of EQ Exchange to appear “legitimate.” “Some of my first investors told me this because they thought it would help me look like I understood the crypto industry better, even though I’m a three-time technology entrepreneur.”

Fortunately, Taylor ignored this comment and brought Ashanti as EQ Exchnage’s co-founder. “I specifically wanted a woman and a colored woman to be my partner because that is the message that needs to be heard here,” she said.

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An echo of Taylor, Sarah Omolewu, founder of Access Abu Dhabi – a program designed to encourage women and minorities to enter the UAE’s business ecosystem – told the Cointelegraph that joining the crypto community gives women an opportunity to build new career paths independently of age or financial status. . She said:

“Women in America were not able to receive credit from a bank until 1974 when the Equal Credit Act was passed. Fast forward to 2022 and less than 2% of the risk financing goes to women-led companies. Web3 could be the equalizer that changes this narrative by involving women at the very beginning of blockchain technology, an area where currently 93-95% of all cryptocurrency users are men. “

Although women still make up the minority of Web3 users, Omolewu explained that Access Abu Dhabi recently partnered with Unstoppable Domains – a platform that provides ownership of NFT domains – to give all nationalities to women living in Abu Dhabi free blockchain domains. “Working with Unstoppable Domains to provide for the first time ever a gift of free blockchain domains to all women in the country is the first step in our long-term goal of disrupting this space for women in the region,” she said.

Sandy Carter, senior vice president of Unstoppable Domains, added context to this to the Cointelegraph that Unstoppable Domains represents a user’s digital identity, making it easy for non-crypto-natives to access Web3. “For example, users do not need to enter a complicated wallet address to send and receive cryptocurrencies, since they can only use their NFT domain.”

According to the Unstoppable Domains website, Coinbase Wallet, ShapeShift and other cryptocurrencies are supported applications. “We have over 300 partnerships. In fact, Paris Hilton recently changed the Twitter handle to ParisHilton.NFT, ”Carter added.

Now it’s time for women to enter Web3

Even with the benefits of music NFT and encouragement from influencers, women may still find it challenging or intimidating to enter the Web3 sector. However, Carter advised that women should get started sooner rather than later, pointing out that the place is still very early. “I like to say that we are in a dial-up phase of Web3 – we are reshaping what the internet is, and we need different voices now.”

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When it comes to financial inclusion, Taylor added that the EQ Exchange helps to provide a sustainable financial system that allows artists – especially women – to thrive. Although the platform was established in March this year, Taylor shared that other female creators are already planning to launch NFT collections. For example, Monifah, the recording artist, actress and producer, told the Cointelegraph that she will launch an NFT collection with the EQ Exchange in July 2023, to mark the 25th anniversary of her single Touch it.

Monifah also mentioned that she believes music NFTs are the future of the industry, noting that artists should do their own research and get involved now.

“I think it would be crazy if I did something in a traditional way at this point. I want to tell artists to really focus more on Web3 and figure out how to manage this space,” she said. Nevertheless, Monifah also shared that she still I find Web3 challenging. “I’m still navigating the Web3 site, but it’s exciting. I want to help introduce the younger generation to Web3.”