Blockchain platform NEAR Protocol announced Saturday (June 19) it has launched an auction featuring over 100 NFTs specifically for hip hop heads.
The new collection is a collaboration with the Universal Hip Hop Museum, Ed Young, who is the co-founder of The Source Magazine, and illustrator André LeRoy Davis.
The collection is titled “A Love Letter to Hip Hop” and according to NEAR’s website each non-fungible token will be an illustration that exists as a collection of 47 to represent the 47 Years of the hip hop era. Old school artwork of icons like the Fat Boys, RUN DMC, Rakim and Ice-T are included in the bundle, in addition to newer artists such as Missy Elliott, Eve, Drake and Kendrick Lamar. Many of the older rap artist pictures appear to be taken directly off the pages of The Source’ s “The Last Word” section, which Davis helmed during his time at the publication.
Some of the NFT proceeds will be donated to the Universal Hip Hop Museum to help establish an original crypto art collection. The featured artist or the artist’s estate on several of the NFTs will also be able to cash in if they decide to. Davis and Young decided to split the donations to “show the unique power and potential of NFTs to benefit creatives and their estates in ways never before possible,” NEAR’s site explains.
“This marketplace highlights several of NEAR’s best features: end-user accessibility, a familiar Web2-like user experience, inexpensive and easy NFT minting, and on-chain royalties that guarantee perpetual proceeds for creators,” NEAR spokesperson Agatha Szczepaniak told CoinDesk.
NFTs will be auctioned daily until July 24 on NEAR’s “A Love Letter to Hip Hop” website. In order to get your hands on these exclusive NFTs, NEAR wants bidders to claim one of its wallets and connect it to the marketplace application. Buyers can bid on each piece using marketplace credits, which can be purchased with a credit card right on the site.