Digital Nod
On February 23, 2022, country music star Jimmie Allen will release an exclusive NFT on Fanpage, an NFT creation platform built on climate-sustainable blockchain Polygon. The multi-platinum recording artist and songwriter’s first NFT—or non-fungible token—will feature an animation of his Gibson Birdseye J-200 guitar.
A resident of Nashville, Tennessee since 2007, Allen was signed by Broken Bow Records’ Stoney Creek imprint in early 2017 and released his self-titled debut EP. Allen’s debut album, entitled Mercury Lane, was released in October of 2018. This was followed by his second EP, entitled Bettie James, in July of 2020.
At the 2021 American Country Music Awards, Allen became the first Black solo performer to win New Male Artist of the Year. In November of 2021, he won New Artist of the Year at the Country Music Awards. He recently announced that he’ll be serving as a guest mentor on the upcoming Season 20 of television program American Idol.
Allen is not the first recording artist to utilize non-fungible tokens as a new way to connect with fans, though the popularity of these blockchain-powered collectibles has grown substantially over the past year. He’s betting that his exclusive NFT will appeal to buyers who want to support their favorite musician and potentially resell their investment at a later date.
While there’s no guarantee that an NFT’s value will increase over time, the crypto-based asset market generated $11.7 billion in trading volume in the fourth quarter of 2021. Other musicians who’ve dropped NFTs include Grimes, whose audiovisual NFT collection earned about $6 million in total sales, and electronic artist 3LAU, whose NFT copy of his album Ultraviolet fetched $3.6 million.
NFT platform Fanpage is uniquely situated to work with music artists like Allen as well as top athletes, brands, and influencers. The company’s creative team includes industry-best 2D and 3D animators and digital artists who work with clients to produce unique digital memorabilia as well as create branded online experiences for the showcase and sale of NFTs.
Allen’s fans who want to purchase his exclusive NFT from Fanpage will be able to do so with a simple credit card transaction. They can also transfer the collectible out of Fanpage if they decide to resell it on another NFT marketplace such as OpenSea, Rarible, or Nifty Gateway.
