List of Celebrities Holding NFTs and Crypto 2023 – Cryptopolitan
A couple of years ago, the idea of buying and selling crypto-art using non-fungible tokens (NFTs) would have seemed absurd. Internet trends, however, seem to move at the speed of light. Celebrities and their followers have joined the bandwagon.
Paris Hilton issued her first non-fungible token (NFT) in April 2021, making headlines as one of the celebrities to publicly “ape” during the 2021 hype.
But times have changed since then. Ether’s price has fallen 60% since the beginning of 2022, and NFT trading volume has fallen 88% since Q3 2021. We take a closer look at the current state of celebrities who own NFTs and cryptos.
Celebrities who own NFTS
1. Snoop Dogg
Snoop Dogg, a rapper and music producer, purchased the work of digital artist XCOPY in December 2021.
Snoop paid 1,600 ETH, or $7,088,229 at the time, for the first NFT. With the reduction in the value of Ethereum, the same amount of ETH will be worth less than two-thirds of its original value.
Snoop’s growing interest in NFTs and Web3 has been notable in recent years. Snoop Dogg revealed his plans to transform Death Row Records into an NFT music label in February 2022, followed by the release of a selection of NFT tracks on OpenSea a few weeks later.
2. Paris Hilton
At the beginning of the twenty-first century, Paris Hilton was a symbol of all new fashion trends. From her passion for Y2K fashion to her proclamation that the selfie will be the new signature, the heiress has always seemed to be one step ahead, which has now extended to the crypto art sector.
Hilton, in collaboration with designer Blake Kathryn, developed a series of three unique pieces titled “Hummingbird in My Metaverse”, “Legend of Love” and “Iconic Crypto Queen”.
As of April 2021, Hilton sold the entire collection for just over a million dollars and released two new NFT-inspired real-life dogs, “Crypto Hilton” and “Ether Reum”. Hilton noted that she is so involved with the new media as a place for fresh creations that she dreams of future projects, artists and even metaverses, and applauds its democratization of art, when asked why she embraces the trend.
3. Gary Vee
Gary Vaynerchuk (aka Gary Vee), an entrepreneur and NFT influencer, bought CryptoPunk #2140 for 1,600 ETH, or $3,953,216 in July 2021. He is among the first celebrities to venture into BAYC.
According to a press release, Vaynerchuck, the entrepreneur who developed restaurant reservation platform Resy, owns more than 7,000 NFTs. In the Web3 realm, he is not only a collector, but also a builder. In May 2021, he released the VeeFriends NFT collection on OpenSea, and in May of this year, he filed a trademark for Vayner3, his own NFT consultancy.
4. Steve Aoki
DJ Steve Aoki is quite the genre-bender, as he embraced the electronic collectible trend by doubling down on the NFT release in March 2022. Aoki, firmly convinced that NFTs are here to stay, collaborated with creative director and 3D- visual artist Antonio Tudisco to create “Dream Catcher,” a piece that included physical copies and raised over $4.29 million.
Recently, Aoki collaborated with motivational speaker Tom Bileus to release the “Neon Future” NFT set. Digital artist Maciej Kyciara developed the science fiction comic, which debuted on Nifty Gateway on April 27. After reflecting on these experiences, Aoki noted that he has always been an avid collector, and the overlap between music and new methods of collecting art has provided him with the ability to combine art, collecting culture, and music.
5. Honorable celebrities mention
So many music celebrities have NFts. Not only has Justin Bieber won over admirers with his many singles, but also with his NFT collection. Bieber entered the NFT market by purchasing his first NFT, Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) #3001, for 500 ETH, worth $1.29 million. Within two weeks, he paid $470,000 for his second NFT, BAYC #3850.
In addition, Shawn Mendez joined the NFT sector after partnering with Avatar technology company Genies. The NFT collection of unique clothing was released to his ecstatic admirers. By purchasing special items via OpenSea such as necklaces, vests, earrings and his virtual guitar, fans could participate in his exclusive events and join his fan base.
When Eminem was younger, he expressed this, which made him even more eager to release his own album. Eminem’s first NFT collection, “Shady Con,” was a digital event that allowed fans to acquire an NFT collectible via Nifty Gateway. Eminem has bought twelve NFTs with his latest purchase, a boring monkey NFT worth 123.45 ETH that serves as his Twitter profile picture.
Celebrities who own Crypto
During Bitcoin’s early years, the general perception of the world’s first cryptocurrency was that it was a dubious new technology supported mainly by computer geeks and Dark Web criminals. However, Hollywood celebrities and powerful figures from around the world have entered the market and changed the negative narrative.
1. Elon Musk
Despite his initial public skepticism about cryptocurrencies, Elon Musk is undoubtedly the most influential person in the Bitcoin community, despite regularly making crypto-related jokes on Twitter. In recent months, he has been known to change the prices of the crypto market with a single comment. Elon Musk is the most vocal advocate of Dogecoin, while Tesla accepts Bitcoin as payment.
2. Lionel Messi
Lionel Messi, now the global brand ambassador for Sirin Labs, creator of the blockchain-based secure smartphone and all-in-one computer. Leo Messi is not only one of the greatest footballers of all time, but also one of the most famous people in the world. After he shared his enthusiasm about blockchain on Facebook and Instagram, the number of people aware of the technology increased significantly.
3. Jack Dorsey
The former CEO of Twitter and Square, Jack Dorsey, is a fervent Bitcoin investor. In 2017, he started pushing for the most popular currency and then he fell in love with BTC. When the cryptocurrency market crashed in 2018, Dorsey was undeterred and declared Bitcoin to be the future global currency, despite the digital currency being at its lowest point in years. In 2023, he has not changed his reason.
4. Mike Tyson
Mike Tyson, the boxing legend, partnered with Bitcoin Direct to launch a Bitcoin ATM and digital wallet for iOS and Android. When he introduced the ATM line, he expressed gratitude for being a part of the bitcoin revolution. It was back in 2015 when Bitcoin was dirt cheap compared to its current value.
5. Honorable mentions
Ashton Kutcher and his wife Mila Kunis, who are both prominent tech investors, are also crypto owners. A few celebrities started discussing blockchain several years ago, but more are joining the movement now. One of them is Oscar-winning actor Jamie Foxx, who used Twitter to advocate for Cobinhood’s initial coin offering.
DJ Khaled has backed Centra’s initial coin offering (ICO). On Instagram, he posted a picture of himself with a Centra card. He also shared a video discussing how to store and use various cryptocurrencies. Furthermore, Gwyneth Paltrow has made several headlines in support of cryptocurrency.
The bottom line
For many celebrities, creating or promoting an NFT is about more than just generating money or maintaining a prominent position in popular culture. By creating or obtaining notable NFTs for celebrities, actors, athletes, and singers have raised significant funds for philanthropic organizations. Positive messages are promoted in several of these projects through the use of digital art.
While adverse market conditions have created upheavals in the NFT space, it will be fascinating to see which celebrities continue to buy digital assets and advocate the utility and community aspects of NFTs, while others change their PFPs and lose interest in their once attractive investments.
