Page One #27
Big Apple NFTs. June 14 - June 20
The dog days of summer continue. While hedge funds, CeFi and the rest of the cryptosphere were trying not to blow up, it was another rather quiet week in the NFT space. At least the free mint meta is over and we don’t have to look at more goblintown derivatives. Still, the cartoon avatar convention is in New York this we
ek, so hopefully we get some cool announcements. Expect a recap of all the NFT NYC news next week. As always, thanks for reading and subscribing and hit the button below to come hang out in The One.
TLDR:
Art Blocks find new homes at fair(er) prices
Bored Apes to auction Rolling Stone 1/1s, kick off ApeFest
CryptoPunks have a new Brand Lead
Dooplicators reveal on Thursday, June 23rd
FLUF World releases Futureverse whitepaper
goblintown reveals team, ending weeks of speculation
Gossamer starts with mysterious seeds
Howlerz catch a bid after CryptoPunks news
Jenkins the Valet debuts first novel Bored and Dangerous on July 11
Lacoste joins the NFT craze with UNDW3
Lonely Pop perseveres after failed Dutch auction
Sneaker Heads make sneakers into avatars
News and Notes:
Art Blocks find new homes at fair(er) prices
Everyone’s favorite generative art house has found their way back onto sales charts this week. After an explosion of interest last summer, Art Blocks have taken more of a backseat role as traders gravitated to avatars and GameFi. With Ethereum at its lowest price in over a year, collectors have come back to pick up the grails they may not have been able to justify purchasing before. Collections like Chromie Squiggles, Memories of Qilin, Screens, Anticyclone and more have seen floors rise amidst increased volume over the past week.
Bored Apes to auction Rolling Stone 1/1s, kick off ApeFest
Yuga Labs announced another collaboration with Rolling Stone magazine in which two 1/1 NFTs, one for BAYC and one for MAYC, will be auctioned off in a traditional auction (in $APE, of course). The auction will go live at 9am EST on the 22nd. During this time, collectible prints of each 1/1 will be purchasable in an open edition for $100 of ApeCoin. The auction will come in the middle of ApeFest, which kicked off at Pier 17 in NYC last night and continues throughout the week.
CryptoPunks have a new Brand Lead
Although Yuga Labs acquired the Punks and Meebits IP from Larva Labs some months ago, they’ve been slow to announce, well, anything regarding their expensive new toys. That changed on the 19th when, following days of accumulation, Garga wrote a Twitter thread announcing Noah Davis (of Christies fame) will be joining Yuga as the Brand Lead for CryptoPunks. A number of purchases seemed to front-run the announcement and the floor has shot up by about 50% over the past week, from about 45Ξ to nearly 70Ξ. While the Punks may now have a director, that does not mean too much will be changing, as Noah has pledged he “will not fuck with the Punks.”
FLUF World releases Futureverse whitepaper
The team behind the ever-growing FLUF World ecosystem has given their community a bit more insight into how all of the pieces tie together with the release of the Futureverse whitepaper. The lengthy paper details their goal of creating an Open Metaverse powered by the Root Network, the blockchain infrastructure created by Ripple, where users can own and create their data and assets, play games and much more. While it doesn’t quite answer all of the questions, it sets up their long-term vision in more detail. Read the full paper here.
goblintown reveals team, ending weeks of speculation
After stirring up a multitude of rumors about their creator ranging from Beeple to Mike Judge to Yuga Labs and beyond, the team behind goblintown revealed themselves last week. Truth Labs is the birthplace of 2022’s favorite free mint. While the team does not include anyone famous, they do have some experience in the NFT space. Their previous collections include Illuminati Collective and The 187, both of which saw increased volume following the team’s announcement. The goblins dipped a bit on the news but will be in NYC serving burgers this week, so who knows what they’ve got up their sleeve.
Howlerz catch a bid after CryptoPunks news
Howlerz, the CC0 avatar-game project from Noah Davis, saw some volume following the announcement that Noah would be leading CryptoPunks. The collection will remain an independent project which Noah intends to finish with Act 3. After that, the project will be handed over to the community and Noah will take zero royalties.
Recent Launches:
Gossamer starts with mysterious seeds
An out-of-the-blue tweet from Timbaland is one of the few pieces of info out there about Gossamer, a “new series coming soon to TV and Web3,” as the tweet says. The collection of 10,000 “Gossamer Seeds” comes from BRON Studios, a media and entertainment company with a lengthy resume of productions. There’s very little out there about Gossamer at the moment, but more info is coming on the 22nd in NYC. This could be one free mint worth keeping an eye on.
Lacoste joins the NFT craze with UNDW3
Not one to let other luxury brands create tokenized communities without joining the fun, Lacoste sold out their debut NFT collection last week. The brand seeks to “push the boundaries of fashion and sport” by giving their community a hand in future creations - starting with the PFP, according to their tweets. Holders will also have exclusive access to products and content. While details are still lacking, Lacoste has heavily emphasized the project on their Twitter, indicating some level of commitment.
Lonely Pop perseveres after failed Dutch auction
After their initial Dutch auction failed to sell out at its lowest price on the 14th, the LonelyPop team spent time discussing how best to move forward with their community before deciding that the mint would continue at a reduced price. After refunding early minters and allowing the market some time to settle, they resumed their mint on the 18th and sold out. The collection has since done nearly 1,000Ξ in volume. It’s encouraging to see a team fight through adversity while communicating with its supporters to create a new plan and even better when they succeed in doing so.
Sneaker Heads make sneakers into avatars
For those who love their shoes, there is finally an avatar that looks like a shoe. Sneaker Heads is the creation of Ali Dawood, an LA-based artist with a history of collaborations in the sports industry. Each head can be “stocked,” their version of staking, to earn rewards that progressively unlock the longer it is stocked. Sneaker Heads hopes to build a successful streetwear brand with holders at the center.
Upcoming Launches:
Dooplicators reveal on Thursday, June 23rd
The Doodles’ first airdrop is set to reveal this week. Nearly a month after it was released, the Doodles team is preparing to reveal more information about what’s inside this week at NYC. The Dooplicator will be seen in their trailer which will debut tomorrow, the 22nd, and each NFT will reveal on the 23rd.
Jenkins the Valet debuts first novel on July 11
Jenkins the Valet and the Writer’s Room will premier their first written production next month. After minting The Writer’s Room collection last summer, Jenkins and team have crafted a story by giving the community the power to make decisions through votes. The novel, Bored and Dangerous, will be written by Neil Strauss with art from MBSJQ and production from Murda Beatz. Jenkins is the best example yet of what can be done with BAYC’s intellectual property rights. Read the full details here.
NFT Market Overview:
It’s been a rough month for NFTs. Volume is the lowest we’ve seen in about a year, but things have started to look up a bit. The past week has brought pain to the crypto market at large, but after coin prices stabilized a bit, more desirable collections seemed to find a bottom - at least locally. This can be seen in the tiny little uptick in the NFT-500 chart. It’s not much, but its what we’ve got.
With Ethereum at a level lower than many picture traders have experienced, blue chip collections like Punks and certain Art Blocks have found new buyers who may not have been interested at such high USD levels. Collections like Clone X and Moonbirds dipped during the sell-off but have rebounded a bit in the days since. While things could certainly go lower, some collections are as cheap in USD as they were around launch, giving those who missed them the first time another opportunity. Hopefully NFT NYC brings some attention back with interesting announcements.
Other Stuff Happened/ing
NFTs:
Burberry teases second Blankos Block Party collection
Nickelodeon releases Rugrats and Hey Arnold! NFTs
Steph Curry launches cross-community NFT project
Uniswap acquires marketplace aggregator Genie
General News:
Colorado Governor is fundraising with NFTs
Foundation is integrating Manifold custom smart contracts
Instagram is working on presenting NFTs in AR
OpenSea rolls out new marketplace contract Seaport
Starry Night Capital’s future in doubt after 3AC goes down