An episode of We Them, the podcast Maceo started in college, where We Them Media began. It was published as audio only. This page carries its full transcript so the words can be read, searched and quoted. It is not a written piece. Listen to it where it was published.
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0:00Maceo: Hello everyone, and welcome to another episode of We Them Niggas, a podcast I’m creating to help Black and brown people domestically learn about Web3, everything from DeFi to music NFTs. I’m excited to help artists learn specifically about how to use the tools that are emerging in this technology. I think NFTs are a movement to really create the artist middle class, create a lifestyle, a life for artists where they can be artists first and foremost and embrace the lives they feel like they’re meant for. And so I’m excited to have Jaden Violet here with me today. Hi. He’s the creator of the Ultraviolet Rave and ongoing Twitter Spaces every day, 11 a.m., where he’s bringing people into the conversation and really building community. I’m truly honored to have you here with me today, and I’m excited to jump into the conversation.
0:39Jadyn Violet: Yeah, no, I appreciate it. Now, this is very, very exciting for me because I do podcasts from time to time. But like I mentioned to you before, this is my first in real life, in actual studio podcast, right? So the vibes are dope. I appreciate you for having me and let’s get started. Let’s get into it, you know?
0:57Maceo: Hell yeah. And so I guess just to jump off, can you give like how you got into Web3, how you discovered it? I know you’ve been an artist for a couple years, so yeah, just like jump into like what this space means to you and how you got to where you are.
1:06Jadyn Violet: Yeah, man. Well, trying to keep it as short as possible, right? Because I feel like I can go on a very, very long run about all of this information on how I got into Web3, how Web3 has benefited me, how NFTs and blockchain technology has benefited me as an artist. So for those of you who don’t know, my name is Jaden Violet. I’ve been making music for about 4 or 5 years, which is not that long compared to some other people that I’ve been meeting in this Web3 space. But I feel like I always had the opportunity to be early to many things in my life, right? Whether it was TikTok, whether it was SoundCloud. I remember when my sister came to me and she was like, look, you know, Musical.ly is turning into TikTok. You should be posting 5 times a day. And I just didn’t take advantage of it, right? I feel like I was early to these things, but I didn’t take the advantage of my awareness of being early to these multiple things. And I feel like when you’re early and you do take advantage, right, that’s when you have the most potential to grow. Right? I think that’s why figures like Charli D’Amelio or Dixie D’Amelio, or, you know, Jake Paul and Logan Paul are so big and have the status and community that they have right now, because they realized that they were early to these, you know, cultural shifting things and actually took advantage of it, right? So, um, you know, my sister was telling me, man, you should, you know, be posting on TikTok 5 times a day and stuff. And I just didn’t do it. And honestly, there’s no excuse other than my own laziness. I saw the person to my left and the person to my right, you know, posting these, you know, short-form videos. And I always made excuses. I was always like, man, I don’t, you know, want to show my face on video. I don’t know how to make short-form videos. and I’m sure people can relate to this. I was so used to posting pictures on Instagram. I didn’t want to adapt. I didn’t want to change. So, you know, I ended up not doing it. All the people, you know, all my peers that I was growing with ended up, you know, gaining their communities, blowing up on these different platforms while I was stuck on Instagram with declining organic reach. And I was always beating myself up over not taking advantage of being early to these things. And, you know, honestly, the same thing happened with me and the NFT space, right? Yeah. And I’m sure everyone has heard of NFTs at this point. And whether you’re scrolling through your Instagram feed or even on TikTok, you hear the word NFTs, but you don’t really know what’s actually going on. And I remember when Bored Apes were minting. And for those of you who don’t know, Bored Ape is an NFT as well. It’s a PFP project. And I remember seeing it for $800, right? And I’m like, man, this looks cool. You know what I’m saying? But I don’t have $800 right now, right? That’s still like a lot of money for me. And I don’t know, even if I could fork it up, I don’t know if I’m gonna like learn about grabbing a MetaMask wallet, you know, learning about a crypto exchange. It’s too confusing for me. You know, I’m an artist. I want to go to FL Studio and make music. But then lo and behold, you know, I ended up not really buying that, a.k.a. minting it. And the cheapest one now is $250,000. And, you know, I beat myself up for it. But it’s the same exact pattern that happened with me and TikTok, right? Realizing I’m early to something but not actually taking advantage of it. Right. So it wasn’t until the end of 2021, I was, you know, making music for about 4 years at this point, you know, posting on all these social media platforms, trying to gain attention. And I remember getting COVID, and it was a blessing under disguise because I was like, okay, I’m gonna be stuck in my room for the holiday season for 10 days. Let me actually put my 100 hours in and learn about this Web3 space, right? And I sat in my room, I started to get on Twitter. I never had a Twitter before that. I started with like 50 followers at the end of 2021, and I started to learn about it. And that’s when I got introduced to music NFTs. And I saw -- I remember seeing this, um, this person sell a song for $10,000 under 2 minutes. To me, that was absolutely mind-blowing. My highest streaming song is 100,000 because of a TikTok video that blew up, but that only gave me about $300. So I would have to get 100,000 streams every single week just to make $300 a week, which is less than minimum wage. It’s almost impossible for an independent artist to make a living off of their art, right? So when I saw that, it definitely attracted me to this Web3 space. I started to learn about it slowly but surely. And now we’re here a year and a half later with so many things happening. You know, my world has completely shifted upside down and it’s thanks to Web3 and NFTs, right? So yeah.
5:04Maceo: Oh yeah. And like now having like made the leap into the space, like what’s like most exciting to you? Like I see you like posting like your Twitter Spaces on Lens now. I was listening to one of those earlier today. Are there like, like when you look at the different platforms in this space, Like, what do you see as like the pros and cons of like the ones that you’re engaging with?
5:22Jadyn Violet: Man, I think there’s a lot about the pros and cons about Web3 specifically, right? When I entered the space, I think the main factor that really convinced me to be in the space long-term was the community side of it, right? And you hear people say that, you know, I’m in it for the community all the time. But for me specifically, right, we’re in Philadelphia right now, but I grew up in New Jersey. There’s not really a community of musicians and of people who are passionate about art in New Jersey, and especially from where I’m from in central Jersey in the town of Franklin, right? So I always had to kind of funnel out online, right? Trying to find these people. And I always looked at groups like ASAP Mob and Odd Future, and I was always like, you know, sort of envious, which is like, man, like these people are a group of artists supporting each other, right? Really like involving themselves in something that’s cultural shifting. That’s what I want, right? That’s what is needed in order to blow up in any regards in which you want to blow up in. And I felt like I was never able to achieve that on social media, right? I feel like all my interactions on Web2, a.k.a. like Instagram, TikTok and stuff, were very like, you know, surface level. It went as far as like, okay, you comment a fire emoji on my post and I comment a fire emoji. And when I got into Web3, and I don’t know if that’s just because it’s the nature that we’re trying to shift in which we interact with each other, or if it’s because we’re early to this whole thing and people are more willing and open to talk to each other. Right. But I didn’t feel that. I didn’t feel that egotistical, narcissistic behaviors that I felt, you know, the past 4 years. I felt an openness like that people actually want to connect and actually want to vibe to the art. So I’m like, man, This is what I’ve been looking for all of the 4 years I’ve been making music, right? I want to connect with people. And that’s why I started doing these Twitter Spaces, right? And for those of you who don’t know, like Twitter Spaces are like Clubhouse, right? There’s these like chat rooms where there’s a host, co-host, speakers, and listeners. And I started my own specifically to talk about music in Web3. And it started off with like maybe 1 or 2 people. We ran it for like 6 hours. Someone joined and we were like, yo, what’s up? And then they left and we were like, ah, damn. You know what I mean? But we just kept going. And that’s where I started to meet so many people from around the world. And I think that’s the biggest pro about this entire space. It’s like, man, you can meet all these people and it’s not only you meeting them and interacting with them, it’s actually a deep connection to the point where like these people are like, man, if you ever come to Australia, you can stay at my crib. You know, you can crash on my couch. If you ever come to LA, you have a place in my home. If you ever come to Canada, you know, South America, like all these places, it’s like, it’s insane. And I think connecting is the biggest part of Web3. And then yeah, I think there’s a lot more, but I’m gonna stop right there for sure.
7:53Maceo: No, I appreciate that. And I know you’ve done some collaborations in the space. What’s that been like? Can you talk about some of the collaborations you’ve done as a musical artist in the space now with the people that you’ve come to call your community, your family in the space?
8:04Jadyn Violet: Yeah, it’s actually pretty cool because I don’t know why I don’t do more collaborations. I really want to just because it’s like, man, being so early to something and like imagine being early to SoundCloud and growing there. And then you see all those artists that blew up from SoundCloud, right? Like imagine being able to collaborate with people before they really blew up, you know? And like, I feel like that’s the opportunity in Web3 music right now and I want to do it more. You know, I’m just like always on like calls and doing the Spaces. I -- it’s my fault. I need to definitely make more time for collaboration. But the, the couple amounts of collaboration I have done, um, you know, for example, with Jamie Cornelia, with, uh, with Xand, um, so many other people, John Waltz, like they’ve been beautiful, right? Because I look at these people like they make amazing music. They’re going to be future legends. And I’m just grateful to have the opportunity to be so early to something that they’re willing to even give me the time of day. to make music with them and make art with them, right? And it’s like the collaborations have been beautiful, like the music has been beautiful, but more importantly, like artists are actually getting paid for their work. You know, being in Web3, like we actually get to collaborate and split bread with each other, right? It’s not just like, okay, I’m gonna market to your following, you market to my following. It’s like we can collaborate, make beautiful art, and then we can sell it as a digital collectible. We can sell it to your fan base and my fan base. And because of like the blockchain, the money and the royalties get automatically split into our own wallets, right? And it’s like, it’s insane, man. You know, it’s so insane. And it’s like, I’ve made -- and I don’t want to relate things back to money, but just to give people a better understanding in comparison, like, I’ve made more money off of my collaborations in Web3 within the past year than I have in just music in general the past 4 or 5 years I’ve been trying to, to make it in the space, you know? Um, so collaboration is everything, um, with music, with IRL events, all of that. It’s, uh, it’s super important to me. Yeah.
9:48Maceo: And so it sounds like, like, I want to go back to the IRL events because I know you just in FTNYC, you had an IRL event you were hosting and in ETHDenver as well. Um, but what I was thinking about, you were talking about like ASAP Mob, like Odd Future, looking at some of these communities that have come together, even like Brockhampton. Um, like if I, if I’m remembering correctly, like Brockhampton came together from like a Kanye fan convention or something like that. Like they were just like, it was like a gigantic Kanye West fan group that then became a group of guys that were like then a band music group. And like, I actually, like, my intention is really to like build a music collective with them. That’s what I’m interested in. I went to like an all-boys boarding school where like there were a lot of dudes from New York, kids that had rapping intentions but didn’t really keep it up. So I was definitely like on SoundCloud. I didn’t have music on SoundCloud, but I have a lot of friends that did, a number of friends that did. And I think like what you’re saying about finding that kind of space and community for yourself, like, I think it’s really easy to take for granted when you’re in like a musical environment, like having friends around you that do that stuff. But like you’re saying, a lot of people, they really don’t have that environment. And I would definitely say like what’s exciting to me, like getting into the music NFT space over the past like 8 months or so is like seeing like how many artists who are really willing to hustle. Like, it’s not like you’re like, oh, trying to talk to your friend who’s not like motivated to do music right now, but you think is super talented. It’s like artists that you know are talented and like committed to growth for themselves and like them as a business. Like, it’s like people who see it and are like, yeah, I’m here to work hard to make this like a sustainable lifestyle for myself. And I think that’s really admirable. And I think it’s super dope to find like a real -- like that community, like finding a home for itself right now. I think right now they’re in the process of finding a home. But I think like the fact that they’re finding each other in the first place, I think says a lot about like where the space is headed, where music is headed. Like, I think music and community go hand in hand without a question.
11:23Jadyn Violet: It’s insane, man. What I realized is that a lot of artists, and this is including myself, right? Like, we love to make excuses, right? We love to point fingers on why we are not in the position that we want to be. We always like to compare and say, oh, this person got it because of this. This person, you know, got it because of this. And it’s like at the end of 2021, before I got into Web3, it was really just a state of self-awareness and like reflection, honestly, looking back at the 4 years. And I’m like, man, if I wanna do something right and be in the top 1% of the people that actually quote unquote make it, right? I kind of relate and compare music a lot to making it in the NBA or like the NFL, right? It’s not like, it’s not easy, right? And a lot of artists, they see this new Web3 technology and they see a bunch of people making money and they’re like, okay, bet, I need to get in the space and I can do this easily. But it’s like, man, at the end of the day, it’s a lot of hard work. It is so much hard work. And I realized like at the end of 2021, like how much time I spent going out to bars, how much time I spent, you know, watching Netflix, you know, just like doing things that don’t contribute to my future. And I had to really just flip a gear and like I’m meeting, you know, a lot of people in Web3 that are in the same mindset to your point. And it’s beautiful, right? Because now we can push each other and it’s not this idea of like my winnings take away from yours, right? Because that’s not the case at all. Like there’s enough for everyone and I’m going to get mine just like you’re going to get yours. And I’m glad to meet people in the, in the same mindset, you know?
12:45Maceo: Yeah, it’s exciting to be in an environment where you’re competing with people, but like, you’re there to build each other up, add value to each other. I think like I got into the space, like through doing research with Water and Music, and we were interviewing people who were collecting music NFTs, which was super dope for me because really how I built my thesis on this space was like hearing people talk about like the sense of belonging they found, like in collective group chats or talking to artists and finding people that really resonated with that music. And I’m like, wow, these are really like, like people that are finding music that makes them feel seen and finding people that can relate to what it is they feel seen about. And I think like finding space where we can do that and have conversations. I know like Ben, who does Ziggy Music, he tweeted this morning talking about how one of the major things of music NFTs is finding a place where you feel like you belong. And I feel like for me it’s like money, like even if you’re not flipping the NFT, just finding a place where you feel like you belong and like a time, like in an age, a digital age where people, so many people feel like their mental health is in a crisis, you know? Finding community like that, I think, can save lives. Absolutely. And I think for me, that’s like, that’s what’s exciting. Like, I know people who would say Juice WRLD saved their life, you know? And so the idea that you cannot just like find the music and the artist, but find like real community no matter where you are in the world, like through your cell phone, through your computer, people who want to support you, people who want to be there for you, even if you’re not an artist, I think is like, is groundbreaking for me. And I think that’s really going to be like, for me, what shifts like the culture is going to be like how fans all of a sudden realize they can relate to each other. through this new medium to connect. And I think that’s really exciting.
14:06Jadyn Violet: That is like literally everything, you know what I’m saying? Like a lot of people think that like the money aspect of it or like people making these million-dollar sales is going to convince so many people to come in the space. But I spent a lot of time like trying to bring my friends, trying to bring other artists into the Web3 space. And a lot of times they see the money stuff, they come in and it’s like they try like making money, they don’t, they leave. But the thing that lets people or makes people stay in the space, right, is being in these Twitter Spaces, being in these like communities and realizing that like it’s actually diminishing their imposter syndrome, right? It’s diminishing their ability to feel like they don’t belong. And it’s like really, really insane, man. Like I had crazy imposter syndrome about my music, right? Before I entered the Web3 space. But, you know, being in these conversations, being in these communities that are really like centered around depth rather than width, it helped me a lot, you know, with a lot of things. And I know it helps a lot of people. So I think that is gonna like, yeah, you said it, you basically nailed it. It’s lit.
15:00Maceo: I appreciate that. And like looking at like some of the, like I know you host like the Twitter Spaces, what have you seen as like the, like I guess more exciting strategies you see artists using to kind of engage their fan bases, like through like their NFT collectors, people who are giving attention to their music?
15:14Jadyn Violet: Yeah, man, I think the number one mistake that a lot of people are doing in the NFT space, or honestly like outside of the NFT space, like if you’re just trying to build a community, right? They look to the people to their left, they look to the people to their right, and they try copying and replicating exactly what they’re doing, right? And at the end of the day, that’s never gonna work, even though you may see some success in numbers, even though I don’t think that’s a correct justification of progress, right? I think what truly matters and what truly develops community is your ability to experiment without fear of failure, right? And I feel like the reason that, you know, we do this Twitter Space called the Underground Violet Rave, we’ve been doing it every single weekday at 11:00 AM Eastern for the past 10 months at this point. And I feel like, and I’m grateful that it’s continuously growing, right? There’s more people being affected by it. There’s more people, you know, getting value by, the community is building. And I think that’s because I’m always trying to figure out like, what can we do that other people aren’t doing, right?
16:12Maceo: Mm-hmm.
16:12Jadyn Violet: And I think a lot of people in the space that are trying to build community, they’re like, okay, this person is doing Twitter Spaces. I need to do Twitter Spaces in order to get to where they’re at. Or, you know, these people are doing a weekly call on Discord. I need to start doing a weekly call on Discord to get to where they’re at. And I don’t think that’s the case. I think it’s about you finding your niche and then really double downing on that, right? Like, don’t do a Twitter Space if you don’t enjoy doing Twitter Spaces, you know, because it’s it’s not going to last anyway. So like, why even put the effort to try like even promising that to the community, right? So it’s like figuring out something that people aren’t doing. I think it’s all about like, you know, creating pockets for yourself, right? And then people will gravitate towards that because it’s new. But people aren’t just building anything new in the space. They’re just copying everything that they’re seeing because they think that’s the recipe to success. But is there even a true recipe when something is this early? You know what I mean? Yeah. I guess that’s something to think about, right?
17:02Maceo: Yeah, I mean, I think that’s, that’s a great question. I think that’s like, like, is like, so I guess I’m curious, like, like you’re not one to copy people, as you say, like, who are the people who have kind of helped you develop your approach to things? Like you’ve been doing calls, you’ve been on your CEO mode, you know, you went from saying like, I know I was being lazier than I needed to be. And now you like past like 10 months, you said, that’s what you said, right? Like, like hours a day you’re on Twitter Spaces, you know, like that’s a grind, you know? So I definitely acknowledge you for like putting the time to do that, creating that space for people because like When you do things like that, you really are the clearing, the opportunity for other people to also get to connect with one another. And I think like I’ve heard you talk like about like, you know, even if you’re uncomfortable, just jump into Twitter Space anyway, like raise your hand, you know, notice that, that anxiety, you know, like be like, all right, but today that’s not what’s guiding me today. I’m being led by my intention to really be an artist, to connect, to build community. And so like, who have been people along your journey that have helped you like, like, I guess, learn about how you want to show up in this space, helped you figure out who you are as Jaden the Violet in the world of music NFTs?
17:57Jadyn Violet: Man, man, there’s so many people. I don’t even want to start naming names because I feel like I’m gonna leave people out by accident just because my memory is terrible, you know what I’m saying? But it’s like, I think, um, that, that’s really important what you just said, right? Like, anxiety is a big thing that affects me on a day-to-day basis.
18:12Maceo: Mm-hmm.
18:12Jadyn Violet: Um, and I feel like people always look and they’re like, oh, you’re confident, like you’re an extrovert and stuff. But it’s like, I’m really not, you know? It’s really difficult even for, like, like you said, joining new spaces. My heart still like beats and stuff, and I’m like, shit. giving, like my mind giving me every single excuse not to do the things that I know I should do in order to grow, right? Yeah. And I think I’ve gotten better at realizing those moments, taking that, putting it to the side, and then literally doing the opposite, right? Going against my mind in order to foster that growth. And it’s been helpful. It’s been very, very helpful. And I think it’s just this idea of like recognizing that, right? But the people that have helped me, man, I feel like it’s this idea of like, it’s a fine line between comparison and gaining inspiration, right? And a lot of times you can fall in this wormhole of comparison when you’re continuously on these algorithms. Right? Because if you’re on the algorithm long enough, you’re always gonna find some way, some reason of thinking, oh, why did they get this many likes? Oh, why did they get this many retweets and I’m not getting it, right? Like, your mind just will subconsciously think that in this attention economy, right? So what I like to do is I like to intentionally scroll through the feeds, right? And gain inspiration. I’m not scrolling through the Twitter feeds unless I’m doing it intentionally to gain that inspiration. Like, I’m literally on the Twitter feeds like 15 minutes a day and that’s it. And I’m out, you know? Yeah. ’Cause like, I’m only on the feeds if I’m, you know, gaining that. But like, man, there’s, um, There’s like so many people, like I think Max Pretends, who’s an amazing, amazing artist in this space, what he’s doing is super, super beautiful because everything that I explained before, he’s literally double downing on that, right? Where it’s like, okay, people are doing Twitter Spaces, people are doing this, people have their things. What’s my thing? AKA, what’s something that I really enjoy that I can do consistently and I can find other people that enjoy it equally? And he does these songwriting sessions every single Tuesday. Oh yeah? And I think, uh, people really enjoy that, you know.
19:57Maceo: Is it a Twitter Space?
19:58Jadyn Violet: No, it’s actually, um, it’s on Discord where like people, uh, he makes people like share their video and stuff and then like share their music and then like he just gives feedback and other people give feedback. And I haven’t been able to hop in as much as I want to just because I’m all over the place, but it’s like, that is exactly what I’m talking about when I say like figure out what you like and create that space for people rather than trying to replicate what’s already there. I think another artist, um, Xand, is a very good, good artist that inspires me musically, right? In my ability to elevate my live performances. I can say the same thing about Henno, right? Like seeing Henno live as someone like -- I was like, man, I’m getting inspired by him. And for him being so humble to even like reach out to me and then like really talk to me on like the same level, not someone who’s on a pedestal, but someone who’s like, man, I feel you, here’s some feedback, take this. And like he’s helped me along the way to like, you know, improve my artistry, right? And I think that’s very, very important.
20:49Maceo: It’s beautiful.
20:50Jadyn Violet: It’s amazing, bro. Like, I wouldn’t be able to connect to these artists if it wasn’t for Web3, you know? Like, I don’t even know if they would respond to my DMs, you know? But now we’re, now we’re here and there’s so many more people. I can’t even -- yeah, it’s so many people.
21:03Maceo: No, but I appreciate you like highlighting those people, giving them some acknowledgment. I guess something else I’m thinking about is like, what do you see as like next for you as you like, like slow down on the CEO mode, Jaden, create some more structure, think more about like music? Like what is like you’re working towards a mixtape or a project? No. the Ultraviolet World. Is that -- is that Violet World?
21:21Jadyn Violet: Um, it’s, it’s called Raver Realm, right?
21:24Maceo: I was
21:24Jadyn Violet: so close, you know, so wrong, like 2 words off, but it’s all good. Um, nah, I feel like, um, I feel like I, I put this tweet out the other day, right? And I said that most music NFTs are, um, having of no value, right?
21:39Maceo: Yeah, it was controversial.
21:40Jadyn Violet: Yeah, it was controversial, right? And it was, uh, it was interesting, right? Because I feel like I always I mean, not me, like many other people in the space have these thoughts. They’re afraid to say it. And then 6 months in the future, right, they see that, you know, come to fruition and then everyone’s talking about it, right? Like, for example, I was talking about collector fatigue and I was always telling like, man, dropping a music NFT every week may not be sustainable, right? Because people like are going to expect something. And if they’re going to keep spending money on you, of course there’s that niche people who will. But if they’re going to keep doing that, they’re going to experience a fatigue, right? And everyone was like, nah, that’s not going to happen. That’s not going to happen. And now you’re starting to see some collectors kind of get aggravated because they’re like, what’s the point of this, right? So it’s like when I put out that tweet, right, it was meant because like a lot of artists feel like there needs to be this collective ideation of like music NFTs are valuable, right? And I truly believe music is valuable, right? But who puts that value on a music NFT? It’s the person creating that NFT. It’s the creator, right?
22:35Maceo: Yeah.
22:35Jadyn Violet: So it’s their job to actually put that value behind that collectible and that asset, right? Because people are putting money towards that asset to actually like, you know, make it valuable for a lot of people. Right. And I think that In order to do that, people need to focus less on building this echo chamber of hype in Web3 and, you know, a bunch of random utility and more on building brand equity in Web2 and in Web3, right? Because once you build brand equity, that’s when people are going to actually want to be tied to a brand, you know? And I think that’s what I want to focus on, right? Rather than dropping a new NFT of my song every single month, I want to put all of my focus on one project, RaverRealm, drop that and then not drop something else the next month or drop something else the next 6 months, but focus on that project for the next 5 years of my music career, right? So that people who believe in me are actually going to know that I’m there to support them, not to just, you know, you know, extract more liquidity out the market. And I’m not saying that’s what a lot of artists are doing, but I think that’s what’s subconsciously happening without them realizing it. Right. And I think that affects people and I think that affects sustainability and long-term growth for a lot of artists that are trying to stay in the space. You
23:42Maceo: know, that makes sense. So what does it look like? I mean, I think that’s a phenomenal point. I appreciate you like turning the attention of the conversation to that. I think like that was definitely like a -- like I saw there was a lot of feedback around that tweet. Yeah. But I absolutely agree with it. Like after our research in the fall, like the experience of belonging is huge, but like people aren’t just being patrons like to support you and your work. They also want an experience. They want to feel like they’re a part of it, like you’re adding something to them aside from like your music, because like at the end of the day, they’re really supporting you living a lifestyle. And I think that’s like huge. But at the same time, like, what are you doing for them being that they’re doing so much for you? And I think it’s great that you want to focus 5 years on this project, but what does that actually look like? Like, what does 5 years of giving back to collectors actually look like?
24:20Jadyn Violet: I think what it looks like, right, is doing what you wanted to do before even learning about Web3. I think a lot of people’s goals and aspirations change now that they’re in Web3 because they’ve seen some sort of momentum. And there’s nothing wrong with that, right? I think it’s an idea of, you know, just deploying some self-awareness. What my end goal is, right, is selling out a stadium and having thousands of people sing my song back to me. A lot of people may not have that same goal and vision, right? A lot of people may just want this niche group of certain people that just vibe to their music and then only kind of cater towards them. And if that’s the case, that’s completely fine, right? You don’t have to worry about promoting yourself to the masses and on Web2 and on TikTok and all of that. Do like what you’re already doing, right? Because that’s what makes you happy. That’s what you want. Want. But for me, if my end goal is to sell out a stadium with thousands of people singing my music, I need to, one, um, do what I want to do in Web3, right? Release that collectible and not release anything else, right? Just focus on that one asset. But then actually try my best to achieve that goal, in turn increasing my brand equity, right? And that means also gaining a following and a community on TikTok through my music, doing more live shows, right? The whole point of the Underground Violet Rave is, of course, we’re doing the daily Spaces, but we’re also doing IRL events to actually grow, you know, grow traction and a name around the brand that’s outside of just Web3 conferences. Yeah. Right? Like the second and third one we did in Virginia and Cincinnati, and that was not even tied to any NFT conference. That was just the local underground scene popping out, you know, because they heard of the UVR, which I think is very, very important. So it’s like, you know, 5 years, there’s a lot, there’s a lot that I can say. But honestly, it’s just growing my name, my music to as many people as humanly possible, whether it’s Web3, Web2. I think It’s all the same when there’s consumers who enjoy music, you know, that you could reach and, um, really funneling all of that back into this project, right? And I think that’s a more organic way to increase a floor price, right? Everyone loves to, you know, talk about floor price, but I think everyone’s, uh, thesis on increasing the floor price is by generating hype in Web3, whereas I think that’s going to die out very quick, um, 6 months to a year from now. And I think the projects that are going to stay here 5 years is the people that build brand equity, uh, outside of the space and then funnel that into the project to bring it up and then just follow my dream and make more music. You know what I’m saying? Because that’s what I, that’s what I love to do.
26:38Maceo: So. Yeah, that’s what you’re here for. But it sounds like you’re a community builder alongside being an artist. And I think that’s really like the, for me, the big paradigm shift is that we’re no longer just centering ourselves as artists in this world of Web3, but it’s about looking at like people, looking at the people that support us, knowing we can’t be anywhere without them. I think like, what is it? SoundCloud was so big. You look at like Juice WRLD, you look at XXXTentacion, And I think like fans meant everything to them. Like they felt like they had a community behind them. They went from people that felt super lonely to people like they had like the world behind their backs. And I think like that’s real in the world of Web3 music from artists as well as from, from fans. And so I’m excited to see my audience get to learn more about that world. This is definitely a great introduction. I appreciate you being with me. Do you want to shout out some of your socials so people can get with you?
27:22Jadyn Violet: Yeah, of course. Nah, man, I appreciate you for having me. This has been absolutely beautiful. I had a good time. But yeah, Jaidyn Violet, literally everywhere. J-A-D-Y-N Violet, like the color. Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, Spotify, Apple Music, all of that. And we do Twitter Spaces, Underground Violet Rave, every single weekday on Twitter at 11 a.m. Eastern time. Tune in and hop on stage if you want just to say what’s up. And yeah, a lot, a lot of stuff coming. And I appreciate you for just for having me, for real.
27:52Maceo: Yeah, absolutely. I appreciate all the grace you gave me. Today was a hectic day. I was definitely late to being here, like way more than I would have liked. The car was dead. I was behind schedule. Jayden’s given me an enormous amount of grace, and I absolutely appreciate you giving me your time today, your attention, answering my questions, being a resource for my audience. I would definitely say jump in that Twitter Space. I think like, like there’s the learning curve for Web3, for crypto, everything is so steep. I think if you’re trying to do it all by yourself, it can be intimidating, can make you not want to do this at all. But I think when you throw your hat over the wall and you go and get that hat, there’s like a world of people over here to support you and be there for you. And I think that just even jumping in that Twitter Space, you’ll find a community who are there to be a resource for you, support you, and like who you can add value to as well. So don’t sell yourself short. Like you can be a contribution to this space even if you don’t know anything yet. So yeah, please come join us over here in Web3. We’re a family and we’re still building. So thanks for coming and listening to another episode of We Them Niggas. Booyah! Booyah!
