Kanye West has made it clear that he's adamantly anti-blockchain — at least for now.
The rapper and fashion designer, who goes by the simple moniker Ye, took to Instagram on Monday to share a handwritten note, stating, in all caps, "Do not ask me to do a f**king NFT." Instead, Ye said he's focusing on "building real products in the real world," which includes food, clothes and shelter.
"For now I'm not on that wave I make music and products in the real work," he asserted in his caption, also written in all caps.
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In 2021, the NFT — or non-fungible token — market took the art world by storm as celebrities and internet personalities rushed to partake in various NFT schemes, including the Bored Ape Yacht Club hype. Digital artist Michael Joseph Winkelmann — commonly known as Beeple — made headlines after selling a NFT of his work for $69 million. Jimmy Fallon, Paris Hilton, Lindsay Lohan, Grimes and more began throwing big bucks to acquire and launch their own collections of simian images that comprise "a limited NFT collection where the token itself doubles as your membership to a swamp club for apes."
Despite refusing to, um, ape that success, don't be surprised if he has a change of heart and decides to create some Ye digital originals. Coachella, for which West is a headliner, recently joined the crypto craze on Monday. The company will sell three collections of NFTs on Feb. 4 via their newly launched NFT marketplace, per The Verge. According to Coachella's official website, an NFT purchase also comes with lifetime festival passes, art prints, photo books, digital collectibles, and plenty more incentives.
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Ye headlines this year's Coachella alongside Billie Eilish, Harry Styles, and Swedish House Mafia this April.
Although Ye's post established his stance against NFTs, he also made it clear that the venture isn't quite off the table.
"Ask me later," Ye signed off.
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