# The $ISSA coin By [Simone Banna](https://paragraph.com/@simone-banna) · 2021-10-09 --- For centuries, the stock market has allowed us to share in the upside of publicly traded companies like Facebook and Amazon. For example, if you invested $10,000 in $AMZN stock in 1998, it would be worth $1.2 million today. In 2011, Issa Rae was producing her YouTube series _Awkward Black Girl_. Ten years later, Issa Rae is a multi-hyphenate star with a top-rated show on HBO, multiple major films, and Emmy and Golden Globe nominations to boot. What if you could have bet on Issa Rae when she was producing _Awkward Black Girl_ to a modest YouTube audience? And what if, as part of your bet, you could unlock certain community benefits? In the regular stock market, these are called **shareholder perks** or benefits (e.g., registered shareholders of IHG can book hotel stays for discounted prices). With social tokens, it's not as crazy or unfeasible as it sounds. As Issa Rae spreads her wings beyond Insecure, she has a unique opportunity to leverage social tokens to allow her passionate community to share financially in her growing empire. A\*\* social token \*\*is a type of cryptocurrency that is based around a brand, community, or influencer. A **cryptocurrency** is a digital or virtual currency that is secured by cryptography, which makes it nearly impossible to counterfeit or double-spend. Popular cryptocurrencies include Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Dogecoin. There are two types of social tokens – creator tokens and community tokens. **Creator tokens** are centered around individuals. **Community tokens** are typically created for memberships or communities. Fandom is changing ------------------ Web 2.0 social networks like Twitter have allowed fans to connect with other fans of their favorite celebrities. In the early days of Twitter, the Beliebers (Justin Bieber's fanbase) went so hard that Twitter allegedly had to prevent Justin Bieber from trending. > so they block me from trending...im actually honored...not even mad...but then i get on and see yet again my fans are unstoppable! luv yall! > > — Justin Bieber (@justinbieber) [July 23, 2010](https://twitter.com/justinbieber/status/19314717234?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) Now Web 3.0 unlocks new possibilities for fandom beyond trending topics. Strategist @[zoescaman](https://twitter.com/zoescaman) defines the new formula for fandom as community + autonomy + equity. Source: [https://zoescaman.substack.com/p/the-future-of-fandoms](https://zoescaman.substack.com/p/the-future-of-fandoms) Scaman defines _community_ as a true peer-to-peer network of like-minded individuals not bound by physical location. _Autonomy_ is the creative freedom and encouragement to develop and share their own ideas and initiatives. _Equity_ is the "ability to 'buy-in' as part of their fandom, to earn based on their advocacy, and to have the potential of a shared upside or payback in the future." * * * Let's talk about how ISSA can use Web 3.0 and social tokens to develop a thriving, decentralized community around her brand, content, and IP. Ahead of the final season of Insecure, Issa would: * Launch an $ISSA coin, a social token that extracts value from the growth of Issa's real-world brands, _Insecure_, Hoorae Productions, _Rap Sh\*t_, etc. * Introduce membership/community benefits for $ISSA coinholders * Drop NFTs to $ISSA coinholders, only tradeable with $ISSA coins * Allow $ISSA coinholders to begin participating in Issa's strategic decisionmaking process for her media empire _Note that I am not a cryptocurrency zealot that believes Web 3.0 will be entirely digital (e.g., "the metaverse"). I firmly believe that there must be real-world utility attached to cryptocurrencies and creator coins for mainstream adoption._ The Initial $ISSA Offering -------------------------- An **initial coin offering** (ICO) is the cryptocurrency industry’s equivalent to an initial public offering (IPO). Typically, a company looking to raise money to create a new coin, app, or service launches an ICO as a way to raise funds. Ahead of the final season of Insecure, Issa would launch the $ISSA coin, a social token that extracts value from the growth of Issa's real-world brands: _Insecure_, _Rap Sh\*t_, Hoorae Productions, etc. As Issa leaves _Insecure_ behind, many community members recognize that her empire and footprint will grow. Community members would buy $ISSA coins for the same reason they buy stock: to share in the potential upside of Issa Rae, Insecure, and Hoorae forever. Buying an $ISSA coin would give coinholders "equity" in Issa's empire, an important component outlined in the new Fandom Formula discussed above. In addition, $ISSA coins would unlock community benefits like voting or access to NFT drops, which I'll cover in the following sections. ### How Issa would benefit Issa Rae would benefit from the $ISSA coin the same way that companies do: access to more capital. For example, Issa Rae recently revealed that she had pitched a program featuring Regina Hall that never got picked up. With earnings from the $ISSA coin, Issa could fund and release the program without the backing of a third party (which is, lowkey, the entire point of decentralization). Using $ISSA Coins ----------------- There is a misconception that cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin should be held. But people are supposed to use coins and social tokens to transact meaningfully. ### Accessing Content and Experiences Launched ahead of the final season of Insecure, the $ISSA coin would grant unique content and experiences to $ISSA coinholders. A baseline offering for all $ISSA coinholders would be access to a Discord server, early Insecure episode previews, and an exclusive weekly, live _Insecure_ post-show Q&A with talent. Naturally, Issa would want to reward her largest coinholders. Ahead of last season's _Insecure_ premiere, Issa hosted a real-world block party. For her biggest supporters, she could host another virtual (or real-world) block party, but the catch this time is: you have to own an $ISSA coin. $ISSA coinholders would have the opportunity to be part of exclusive experiences and gain access to exclusive content. Attaching tangible value to social tokens builds morale in the community and allows community members to feel a greater sense of belonging and reward. ### How Issa would benefit Issa providing unique experiences to coinholders would drive demand for the $ISSA coin and fuel an increase in the underlying price of the coin. A higher-valued coin equals more capital at Issa's disposal for side (or eventually, major) projects. By being part of Issa's community, community members will also likely have a greater affinity for Issa Rae as well and want to become even more active in the $ISSA community. ### Purchasing Digital Art (NFTs) If you're on Twitter, you've heard about NFTs by now. **Non-fungible tokens** (or NFTs) are cryptographic assets on blockchain with unique identification codes and metadata that distinguish them from each other. Non-fungible means that it's unique and can't be replaced with something else. NFTs can be art, GIFs, videos, music, etc. Ahead of the final season of Insecure, Issa would drop a capsule collection of NFTs only available to $ISSA coinholders at launch and then tradeable with $ISSA coins. Issa's community is encouraged to trade NFTs as they see which ones have the most real-world value throughout the season. For example, someone could "own" an NFT of artwork featured in the background of a hotly debated scene. That NFT increases in value because everyone is talking about and rewatching that scene. This also encourages the community to watch the show. NFTs also allow community members to create economies around unique artwork or content. Every Black girl I know that visits LA takes a picture in front of The Dunes apartments featured on _Insecure_. Someone who owns an Issa-sanctioned depiction of The Dunes could sell it for 1000 ISSAS (with Issa still getting a predetermined portion of that sale). ### How Issa would benefit NFTs allow creators to retain ownership of the rights to their art but still share in the upside of their art increasing in value over time in perpetuity. Let's say Issa produces a historical drama series about _The Dunes_ in 2025 that sweeps the Emmys. The demand for that unique piece of artwork depicting The Dunes would increase. And when demand exceeds supply, prices will rise. Now, the community member who owns that artwork of The Dunes could sell it for 1,000,000 ISSAS (with Issa still getting a predetermined portion of that sale). ### Community Voting and Decisionmaking (DAO) A **decentralized autonomous organization** (or DAO) is a blockchain-based cooperative that is collectively owned by its members, with rules set and executed through code. DAOs reinforce the autonomy component of the Fandom Formula. Think of a DAO as a board. If I sit on the board of Facebook, I'd likely have a say in matters like their acquisition of Instagram or their metaverse strategy. A DAO would allow $ISSA coinholders to vote on matters relating to the brands behind the $ISSA coin. Issa could let the community vote on something as momentous as what show/movie Issa should produce next to something as small as what Black-owned designers Issa should work with. The DAO allows $ISSA coinholders to have a voice in the direction of _Insecure_, Hoorae, and other umbrella brands. ### How Issa would benefit A DAO would incentivize Issa's community to hold $ISSA coins to be able to vote on matters related to her brand. Beyond increasing the value of her coin, the DAO can act as an ongoing focus group, allowing Issa to gauge what her community wants to see. Why Aren't People Doing This? ----------------------------- Issa could accelerate adoption with the release of an $ISSA coin, but even then, we're years away from this type of peer-to-peer community being mainstream. Barriers to success are _commitment,_ _mainstream adoption_, and _ownership_. Nurturing a community, even a somewhat autonomous one, requires dedication. My prediction is that social media managers will be replaced with community managers in the coming years, which will ease the transition to the peer-to-peer nature of Web 3.0. Mainstream adoption is also a barrier to success. It is still very early in the cryptocurrency and NFT space. Mainstream adoption of crypto and NFTs will lag for years, but the $ISSA coin could provide a fun, meaningful way for more Black and brown women to explore Web 3.0 and cryptocurrency. Finally, _ownership_ is key. In order for Issa (and any other creator) to sell and maximize profits from valuable IP like _Insecure_, they must own the rights to the content. * * * If you liked this write-up and want to dive more into Web 3.0 and social tokens, I've compiled resources below (in no particular order). [https://raindrop.io/simonembanna/further-reading-19794252/embed/search=%23tokens](https://raindrop.io/simonembanna/further-reading-19794252/embed/search=%23tokens) --- *Originally published on [Simone Banna](https://paragraph.com/@simone-banna/the-issa-coin)*