The legendary hip-hop label Def Jam is entering Web3 with a new metaverse band called ‘The Whales.’  The inspiration stems from The Catalina Whale Mixer NFT collection on Solana (SOL). Created by WAGMI Beach, the 5,555 digital whale NFT collection revolves around a huge community of NFT enthusiasts on Solana’s blockchain, thus constantly trending on MagicEden.

The new band based on NFT avatars will drop their first album sometime later this year, but the long-term goal is to “deepen the relationship between music and Web3 culture.” According to the NFT collection’s co-founder Ben Willis, “to be working with Def Jam on releasing this one-of-a-kind new music project is a dream come true.”

Fait intéressant, Les baleines is not the first metaverse band backed by an actual record label. Previously, Yuga Labs, the creators of the most successful NFT collection, a signé un accord avec Universal Music Group (UMG) to establish a Bored Ape group called KINGSHIP.

The Bored Apes shook hands with well-known hit-making producers for the new project, officially signed to Probably A Label, a Web3 subsidiary of Universal Music Group (UMG). Les producteurs Hit-Boy and James Fauntleroy had been working with Kendrick Lamar, Jay-Z, Beyonce, and Justin Timberlake.

For this reason, Yuga Labs also issued 5,000 Key Card NFTs linked to the band’s activities. This includes exclusive VIP events, backstage access, and minting of Kingship-themed NFTs and will also be interoperable in Autre acte par Otherside, the metaverse project aiming to bring the Bored Ape community together in the sticky sewer of Dookey Dash.

Collaboration between blockchain tech and Web3 can help tackle the music business’s centralization issues and further accelerate crypto adoption.