Basically the short version is Discord is getting into Crypto and NFT’s despite everyone asking them not to do so. and their CEO has been teasing integration with crypto and keeping track of NFT’s
imagine if you went up to the mona lisa and you were like “i’d like to own this” and someone nearby went “give me 65 million dollars and i’ll burn down an unspecified amount of the amazon rainforest in order to give you this receipt of purchase” so you paid them and they went “here’s your receipt, thank you for your purchase” and went to an unmarked supply closet in the back of the museum and posted a handmade label inside it behind the brooms that said “mona lisa currently owned by jacobgalapagos” so if anyone wants to know who owns it they’d have to find this specific closet in this specific hallway and look behind the correct brooms. and you went “can i take the mona lisa home now?” and they went “oh god no are you stupid? you only bought the receipt that says you own it, you didn’t actually buy the mona lisa itself, you can’t take the real mona lisa you idiot. you CAN take this though.” and gave you the replica print in a cardboard tube that’s sold in the gift shop. also the person selling you the receipt of purchase has at no point in time ever owned the mona lisa.
unfortunately, if this doesn’t really make sense or seem like any logical person would be happy about this exchange, then you’ve understood it perfectly
It's going to be auctioned. Half the money is going to go to charity. Half of it. Not all. 50%. 10% goes to the artist. So that means that 40% of it is going to.... whoever this is? The Academy? To the website hosting the auction? I don't know! But it's kinda bullshit to use the Oscars and Chadwick Boseman's image and death to make some cash! Sorry, to make some cryptocurrency, because the website it's being auctioned on only accepts etherium, as far as I can tell, and oh this is so awful.
Just... fucking donate to charity if you want to donate to charity, you assholes. Don't make it into something you're gonna profit off of.
Hi Everyone!
I’ve had some people reach out to me today about NFT’s, and why it’s bad that Gorillaz is involved. So I’ve decided to compile a ton of info in a post for people who are confused, and tips on how to help!
TL;DR: Gorillaz have announced that they are producing NFTs, a form of crypto currency attached to digital art that wastes more energy than most people’s homes do in a year.
What is an NFT?
An NFT (non-fungible token), also known as Cryptoart, is a unit of unique data that represents a digital item, typically digital art, music, videos, and other digital files. Basically, think of it like a Bitcoin that is linked to or attached to a .jpg.
It’s complicated, but in theory, it’s meant to be like fine art auctions, but for digital art. However, buying an NFT does NOT give you ownership of the file, or even exclusive access to the file. Anyone else can view and save the original image/file. All the buyer gets is the unique digital metadata that is attached to it.
Here is a video by the Wall Street Journal that does a good job of breaking down what an NFT is.
Why is it bad?
NFT’s are controversial for several reasons.
For one, you do not need to prove that you are the original artist or creator of the digital art to tokenize it. That basically means that anyone can take your digital art and sell it as an NFT. Shitty, I know.
It is an incredibly inaccessible and fluctuating market, and works like a pyramid scheme.(linked is a very good infographic on the topic by Cabeza Patata on Instagram.)
However, the most damning and negative side effect is its environmental impact. Because of the large amount of computing power needed to create NFTs, an INSANE amount of energy is used, creating a LOT of pollution. An UNETHICAL amount of pollution.
To quote this article by Uproxx, “In one instance, the 10 seconds it took […] to sell six NFTs consumed 8.7 megawatt-hours of energy, comparable to the amount of electricity used by a household in a single year.”
It’s hard to explain exactly HOW or WHY it uses so much power, so here are some articles that do a better job of explaining it than I can:
This is a huge kick in the face due to the fact that Gorillaz has always produced music preaching environmental consciousness, and is deeply disappointing to fans. It’s hard to say if Jamie or Damon are fully aware of NFT’s impact, but regardless, it is a huge blow to the message of Gorillaz.
What can I do about it?
**DO NOT GIVE YOUR MONEY TO GORILLAZ OR SUPERPLASTIC.**DONT EVEN STREAM THEIR MUSIC. DO NOT SUPPORT GORILLAZ FINACIALLY UNTIL THEY ADDRESS THIS IN A MEANINGFUL WAY.
Instead, you can:
Support Gorillaz fan artists by commissioning them or buying their prints!
Buy any Gorillaz merch second hand/used (but take care to avoid scalpers.)
Here is a petition for Gorillaz to cut ties with Superplastic and stop production of NFTs!
Spread the word! Share this Post! Stay informed! Make sure everyone knows about the impacts of NFTs! This should go beyond the sphere of the Gorillaz fandom!
In addition to all of this, it should be noted when speaking on the topic of Gorillaz that the people organizing these NFTs aren’t Damon and Jamie.
Their roles in the band are primarily creating art and music, with any input they have beyond that seeming to be fairly minimal. This is pretty common when it comes to mainstream bands, but I’ve seen a lot of people directing their anger at these two when in reality this was a marketing decision.
The same people happy to capitalize off of Plastic Beach’s 10th anniversary last year are the same people hoping to get into the crypto market at the cost of our own environment. If they didn’t know that before, with this much negative press they probably do now.
joshuamartian
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