Never meet your heroes, kids. Just last week, following the launch of his debut album Montero, our features editor Jade King wrote about the queer rebellion of Lil Nas X, and why the game development scene is sorely missing a character like him. This week, Lil Nas X revealed he is part of a TikTok initiative to promote NFTs, alongside Bella Poarch, Grimes, and Brittany Broski, better known as 'Kombucha Girl'. Sigh.
Grimes has done NFTs before, so her involvement is not a surprise. I don't think I've ever thought about Kombucha Girl for more than a second, and while Build a Bitch is fine, I also harbour no strong feelings one way or the other for Bella Poarch. Lil Nas X though - that stings. His involvement is particularly disappointing, as was McKayla Maroney's NFT initiative a few months back. Maroney, an Olympic gold medallist, was one of the key figures in the case against Larry Nasar, brave and wise beyond her years in the face of horrific abuse. That she is selling NFTs of shitty memes and shittier artwork doesn't negate this bravery, nor (obviously) should it be held against her in her quest for justice. But it makes her significantly less likeable - the same applies to Lil Nas X.
Does it matter if we like celebrities? Not really. The age of the relatable celebrity is over - we have no place for the Chrissy Teigens of the world when faced with massive wealth inequality. Celebrities are not just like us - they throw birthday parties with holograms of their late fathers at the height of Covid. They have more money than us, they have bigger platforms, and yet so few seem invested in fixing the world in any way. They do not owe us a better world - most of them are entertainers - but there has been, for the past five years or so, an understanding that we live in different worlds. Most of the time, we can put that aside and just enjoy their work. NFTs make that harder.
I already wrote about NFTs after numerous gaming companies tried to capitalise on the trend, but here's a brief rundown. NFTs are essentially files that cannot be copied (they are almost always computer files). You can copy them still, but only the original owner technically has the rights to it. Think of that pic of Lil Nas X above. You can right click and save it right now, but if the site made it an NFT, we could 'sell' ownership to someone else. They would own it. But you could still right click and save it.
Sound stupid? Great, seems like you understand. In order to keep this made up business going, various blockchain servers and cryptocurrencies are used - this requires a lot of energy, and as a result affects massive environmental damage. All so someone can own a jpeg. There are some NFTs that get around this, and manage to be energy efficient, but they are the exception to the rule. Anybody getting involved in this business is supporting an industry that, in most cases, causes huge environmental damage with a single pointless transaction.
My gut - perhaps as a result of peering through rose-tinted glasses - tells me that someone on Maroney's team pitched her the idea of making her famous meme into an NFT, conveniently leaving out the environmental damage. She goes ahead and does it. Maroney is a grown woman capable of making her own decisions, but I think this is a conceivable thing that might have happened. With Lil Nas X, I wouldn't buy it. Being massively online is part of his appeal.
He knows what an NFT is, and regardless of how environmentally damaging these particular TikTok NFTs are, it's a worrying sign that so many industries are moving to legitimise a business model that, try as I might, I can only ever see as fictional. NFTs are based on made up ownership. It's like owning the stars or a bridge. You don't. Not really.
I shouldn't care what celebrities are shilling for. Had it just been Grimes and Poarch, I likely wouldn't have bothered writing this. But especially after Maroney, Lil Nas X stings. Celebrities aren't your friends. Never meet your heroes. Don't buy NFTs.