As the metaverse and Web3 platforms empower artists to connect with fans in new ways, many have developed immersive experiences for popular gaming platforms like Roblox and Fortnite, and others are turning to startups like royal to sell digital collectibles directly to fans.
However, as artists become more comfortable with these new technologies and continue to explore their potential, an emerging trend is going to be for artists to create their own branded digital communities beyond one-off events such as a Roblox concert. An early adopter of this strategy was deadmau5, who established a permanent deadmau5-themed virtual world, called Oberhalsi, in Core last year.
DJ Steve Aoki is taking this concept to the next level with the launch of A0K1VERSE, which he describes as an ecosystem that bridges the gap between the metaverse and the real world. “It's an exclusive membership unlike any other community out there,” Aoki wrote in a Tweet announcing A0K1VERSE. “Imagine an NFT that will grow with you over time & the more invested u are in it, the more rewards u will receive.”
He continued, “I am combining an entire career’s worth of relationships, my music, my art, my network into an all encompassing exclusive membership community.” Members, called Citizens, will have access to both digital and IRL experiences, including a private Discord server, pre-sale access to Aoki NFT releases, free concert tickets, digital and physical collectibles, virtual metaverse performances, and token-gated access to A0K1VERSE-only events.
The A0K1VERSE ecosystem is based around A0K1 credits, of which there is a total of 50,000. A0K1 credits are NFTs that fans will be able to redeem for a personalized Passport starting on February 22nd. The Passport will be “a dynamic NFT that evolves over time as you continue to use it for different experiences, building your own unique identity in the A0K1VERSE,” according to the community’s site.
A certain number of credits will be made available to existing Aoki NFT holders, while another portion will be available for purchase after February 11th. The remaining credits will be used for fan rewards in the future. There are six possible Passport levels that fans will be able to obtain depending on the number of credits that they redeem, which each increasing level offering more rewards and experiences than the last.
Aoki’s longer-term vision is for anyone to be able to build on the Passport in order to use it as an access token for their own virtual realms and communities. Further details regarding possible rewards and the different Passport levels will be released in the coming weeks.