Coopahtroopa

Music has a new canvas. NFTs directly value creative work, without input from an intermediary. We’re witnessing the early stages of an audio movement - driven by scarcity, fandom and access. This article highlights the Music NFT landscape - providing insights for musicians, managers, labels, agents, fans and collectors alike. Let’s dive in. *EDIT: Looking to stay up with Music NFTs? I write a weekly newsletter on everything you need to know. Subscribe to This Week in Music NFTs here.*What are...

Artists want to be heard. Whether it's Spotify or TikTok - strategic partners share one goal: more fans. When it comes to music, record labels are the strategic partner that every aspiring artist strives to work with. There are three major labels in the music industry today: Universal Music Group (UMG), Sony Music Group (SMG) and Warner Music Group (WMG). In this post, we’ll explore the role of labels today, and how web3 labels are working their way into the picture. If you found this ar...

I’m doubling down on investing in the intersection of culture and crypto by joining Variant as its newest Venture Partner. Here’s what it means, and how to tap in.My Web3 ThesisThe Ownership Economy, The Passion Economy, The Creator Economy. They all share one core thesis - share value with those who create it. In the context of web3 - we use community ownership to capture it. Over the past year, social communities have become the core driver of new cultural asset classes represented by NFTs,...

I’ve been going to shows since I was 15. My first ever concert was Avicii - shortly after “Levels” came out in 2012. I became obsessed with going to shows in Philly - quickly making it a core part of my identity. This is why I went to school in Colorado, to be closer to venues like Red Rocks and attend hundreds of shows a year. During this time I met Jordan Chaffin, Jake Nixon and Cece Palmquist - three fellow music lovers and curators. While we didn’t know it at the time, we’d link back up t...

Getting started with Music NFTs is hard. Whether it’s the terminology, curation or cost - artists need support to become acclimated with the web3 community. I have learned first hand the importance of moving with intentionality as we build a more diverse and inclusive space for creators new to web3. To this notion, I’m excited to launch the Music NFT Launchpad - a cohort of 10 artists brought together to learn about web3 and mint their first Music NFT. The Launchpad features:A month-long educ...

DAOs are internet communities with a shared bank account and cap table. Many have predicted that DAOs will eclipse centralized organizations - eventually becoming bigger than countries, companies, and other entities that exist in the world today. How does that happen, and how do DAOs successfully scale to that size? Through SubDAOs. In this post, we’ll dive into SubDAOs - and how DAOs can grow into the digital nation states web3 has paved out for them.DAOs TodayMost DAOs are structured as fol...

There’s a new wave of artists in town. They’re born from web3 and are creating deeper fan relationships through collectible, community-owned experiences. We’re talking about metastars - or web3-native artists releasing Music NFTs.What are Metastars?We’ve seen fictitious avatars like the Gorillaz, Daft Punk, and Marshmello. However, we’ve yet to see what a truly web3-native artist is capable of when armed with NFTs. Thanks to the advent of projects like the Bored Ape Yacht Club and FLUF World,...

The world is changing. We can work on what we love, and get paid in the process. Today - I’m going full-time DAOs. I stand up internet communities and create tokens that represent ownership in them. This post will dive into the ethos of working for a DAO, and the key learnings that come from life as a crypto native. Here’s how I work for DAOs, and how you can too.All DAOs Lead to CoopahtroopaDAOs have been a topic of conversation since my earliest days in Ethereum. I wasn’t around for The DAO...

I’ve been a fan of music my whole life. There’s never been a way to bet on the songs (and artists) I love - until now. Over the past year, I’ve dedicated the majority of my time to collecting Music NFTs - or collectible songs. I’m proud to be the leading collector on Sound.xyz - with 600 NFTs from more than 200 artists.My Sound.xyz profileThroughout this time, I’ve developed a collecting strategy. Support emerging artists using web3 to meaningfully impact their career. In September, I announc...

Growing up I always had one goal. Make a living by supporting great music. Today - I’m proud to announce Coop Records Fund I - a $10M early-stage fund investing in the next generation of music. Here’s what you need to know.The ThesisMusic is a difficult industry to invest in. As someone who’s consumed music their whole life, there have been very few opportunities to participate in the growth of the artists that I love the most. What if you could be an early investor in SoundCloud or Spotify? ...

NFTs. DAOs. Web3. These are all terms tossed around every group chat in the past year. While it’s exciting to talk about, many creators today lack a reliable guide to offer a smooth onboarding journey to web3. Whether it’s a lack of confidence on where to spend time, who to partner with or simply how to get started - this article looks to serve as a resource for creators new to web3. Here’s why.Creator InfluenceUnlike the vast majority of the population, creators tend to enter new technology ...

If you were on Soundcloud in 2014 - you probably remember collectives. Brands like OWSLA, Mad Decent, Foreign Family, FutureClassic, Deadbeats, bitbird and Sable Valley. These were groups of artists who banded together to create communities around certain styles and genres. Collectives were a great way to discover emerging talent - and an even better way to amplify songs from the core group of artists. This article highlights the rise of Web3 Collectives.What are Collectives?Collectives are a...