NFT Showbiz and Celebrity Breaking News

Epic Games Store has changed its own rules to allow blockchain games to be sold on the platform.Epic Games Store had a blanket ban on all Adults Only titles, but it has recently adjusted its own rules to allow blockchain games.As it stands, all games based on blockchain technology or utilising NFTs are rated Adults Only by the Entertainment Software Ratings Board (ESRB) because of how they offer rewards that can be converted into real-world currency.“Products with Adults Only ratings cannot be distributed on Epic Games Store [which also] treats unrated products as having a mature (18+) rating,” said the store’s rules but earlier this week, an amendment was added.

Ready Player One author Ernest Cline has teamed up with AI tech company Futureverse for a new “multi-IP” experience, similar to Fortnite.Announced late last night (January 4), Readyverse Studios has been set-up by Futureverse co-founders Shara Senderoff and Aaron McDonald alongside Cline and the producer of the Ready Player One film, Dan Farah.The first release from Readyverse Studios is set to be the Readyverse, which is due for launch later this year. According to a press release, The Readyverse is a “a dynamic interactive platform of interconnected digital experiences,” with many fans comparing it to Fortnite.Readyverse Studios has already confirmed a partnership with Warner Bros.

95 percent of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) are all but worthless now, according to a new study by crypto research group dappGambl. It’s no secret that the once-hyped crypto assets — pitched as viable revenue streams for artists and ways for fans to invest in the creators they loved — have lost ground after reaching a peak trading value of $17 billion in 2021.

blunt with their consequences.Ashton Kutcher and his wife Mila Kunis reportedly owe the Securities and Exchange Commission $1 million in fines after the SEC found that the embattled couple had been conducting unregistered offers of crypto asset securities. The government agency also claimed in a press release that Kutcher, 45, and Kunis, 40, were misleading investors for their new series “Stoner Cats.”According to the release, the project sold more than 10,000 NFTs for a profit of $8 million in order to finance the animated series, but by doing so, the SEC claimed that they had violated the Securities Act of 1933 “by offering and selling these crypto asset securities to the public in an unregistered offering that was not exempt from registration.”“Stoner Cats,” which stars Kunis, Kutcher, Chris Rock and Jane Fonda and several other high-profile celebrities, tells the story of a group of cats as they attempt to take care of their marijuana-smoking owner who suffers from Alzheimer’s disease/Reps for both Kunis and Kutcher were contacted by The Post for comment.

David Bowie’s ‘Let’s Dance’ is set to be released alongside a series of NFTs.To celebrate the 40th anniversary of ‘Let’s Dance’, blockchain platform Gala Music has teamed up with writer and producer Larry Dvoskin (David Bowie, Robert Plant, Bono, The Beach Boys) to release a limited series of David Bowie inspired digital collectibles.The series goes live April 14, giving fans early access to a previously-unheard version of ‘Let’s Dance’ which was recorded 19 years after the original and produced by Dvoskin.“I am first and foremost a huge Bowie fan. It would have been a mistake to attempt to copy the original.

David Bowie digital art project approved by the late artist’s estate is set to launch next week.The venture is a partnership between the Bowie estate, the NFT marketplace OpenSea, and Andrew D. Keller and Joaquin Acrich’s Web3 company We Love The Arts.Set to launch on September 13 on OpenSea, Bowie On The Blockchain is being billed as “a first-of-its-kind multiple artist NFT sale” that will bring together the work of nine NFT artists.Each artist, including Pussy Riot‘s Nadya Tolokonnikova, has created “their own unique takes paying homage to David Bowie and his influence across their artistic and personal identities”, according to a press release.Tolokonnikova said in a statement about Bowie On The Blockchain: “David Bowie to me is a platonic ideal of an artist, charismatic, passionate, imaginative, magnetic af, he always puts art x curiosity x subversion over profit, a magician and a muse.

Muse‘s ‘Will Of The People’ is on course to become the first ever UK Number One album that uses NFT (non-fungible token) technology.The Devon-formed trio’s ninth studio record, which arrived last Friday (August 26), is currently outselling the rest of the Top 10 albums combined, according to the latest update from the Official Charts Company.Behind Muse in the Top Five is Harry Styles‘ ‘Harry’s House’ (Number Two), Kendrick Lamar‘s ‘Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers’ (Number Three), Embrace‘s ‘How To Be A Person Like Other People’ (Number Four) and DJ Khaled‘s ‘God Did‘ (Number Five).Should Matt Bellamy and co.

The Beatles, Taylor Swift, and Bob Dylan, as well as smaller, less established acts.HitPiece relaunched last week with new artist partnerships and industry ties, moving out of its test beta stage. According to founder Rory Felton, the brand has signed deals with young artists and producers, including producer ATL Jacob and rappers and singers Lil Gnar and Lil Gotit.In an interview with Input, Felton said HitPiece’s initial launch earlier this year had occurred before he had secured “the proper guardrails in place around the product, which led to miscommunications and challenges that happened”.

Travis Barker and Aitch are among a host of artists set to launch new NFTs with LimeWire as the file sharing site relaunches as a crypto marketplace.Over the coming weeks, they will launch new collectibles on the marketplace alongside the likes of Brandy, Nicky Jam and more.“I have always been interested in Web3 and NFTs so I am pretty stoked to release my first NFT collection and to do it on LimeWire,” Barker said in a statement.“I hope that my NFT collection will inspire aspiring artists and fans who want to learn about my creative journey and how I make music. LimeWire has created a platform that makes exciting content like this accessible to all of my fans – even ones who are unfamiliar with Web3.”The Blink-182 drummer’s collection, his first ever NFTs, will feature “behind-the-scenes footage of himself working in the studio, allowing the NFT collectors to have a first-hand look at his creative process.

Jack White has distanced himself from The White Stripes NFTs released last year, and expressed his dislike of the format.In April 2021, the band announced that a visualiser of the The Glitch Mob remix of their track ‘Seven Nation Army’ would be sold as an NFT also containing a number of unique art pieces.The remix also landed on streaming services a few days later and was then available for purchase on physical vinyl in June through White’s Third Man Records.Now, in a new interview with The Atlantic, White expressed his distaste for NFTs and said that last year’s release was driven by management.“I don’t want to come out and say ‘I had nothing to do with this,’ ” he said. “It is my band.

paid 20.0Ξ — which equates to $39,535 — for an NFT titled “Devotion.” The work is one of “The Wild Within” series (which consists of 13 NFTs in total) by artists Ryan Koopmans and Alice Wexell, who capture abandoned buildings from the USSR. The image shows a dilapidated Soviet-era sanatorium in Georgia — specifically, the once-famed Tskaltubo resort, which was a popular health destination known for its therapeutic waters.“This one stops me. James Joyce said that’s a good thing.

NFTs in a recent phishing scam – including one image from the Bored Ape Yacht Club series that he had been intending to base a new TV show around.Fred Simian, an ape pictured with a halo and a skeleton t-shirt, was sold for over $200,000 after the actor, producer, writer and director unwittingly visited a phishing site on May 8.The image was then acquired by a user named DarkWing84, and from there to GBE_Vault. The image’s transaction history can be traced through the NFT platform OpenSea (per Consequence).Green is particularly concerned that no longer owns the commercial rights to the character, due to appear in his latest project, Whitehorse Tavern.“Well frens it happened to me.

she has released three NFTs (short for nonfungible token, it is a dumb internet trend that I refuse to accept or understand) of a 3D-animated version of herself completely nude, spread-eagle and giving birth to centipedes and full-size trees.And it’s not even Arbor Day.Like a porn scene from “Westworld,” a fembot Madonna sits on a metal operating table in a sterile lab while Central Park exits, in clown-car fashion, from between her legs. The song “Justify My Love” plays in the background. Huh.

EXIT Festival organisers have announced a new NFT collection ahead of this year’s main event.The collection, which will start minting at this year’s Tomorrow conference on May 14, will include headphones featuring EXIT’s first logo from 2001 in 3D as well as the Tribe gift collection, intended for the earliest members of the the festival’s Discord community.Owners of EXIT’s NFT art will also have the opportunity to hang out with some of EXIT’s headliners this year, as well as being granted exclusive access to the Dance Arena stage and secret parties at hidden locations across the festival site.For more information on the NFT collection, as well as how to purchase and mint, head here.Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds will headline this year’s bash at the Petrovaradin Fortress in Serbia from July 7-10, alongside acts which include Calvin Harris, Napalm Death, Jax Jones, Honey Dijon, Maceo Plex, ZHU, James Arthur and Marky Ramone. You can view the full line-up so far below.Getting closer to #EXIT2k22 and our stellar acts! Let's welcome @Noisia_nl & other #XBass names joining @CalvinHarris, @nickcave, @IGGYAZALEA, @JamesArthur23, @maskedwolfmusic, @BB_BORISBREJCHA, @MaceoPlex, @sepulturacombr & more! On 7-10 July at https://t.co/sNb0VZlM8W! pic.twitter.com/CPH5HsY0C5— EXIT Festival (@ExitFestival) April 22, 2022Tickets are on sale now and can purchased here.

Nintendo of America boss Reggie Fils-Aimé has talked about his interest in blockchain technology and how it could be applied to different games.As noted by Nintendo Life, Fils-Aimé was recently at SXSW, where he sat down for an hour-long interview (published on April 26) and answered questions about the current state of the games industry.The discussion turned to blockchain and crypto – which can be seen in the video embedded below – where Fils Aimé expressed his positive ideas behind the currently evolving technology.“So I’m a believer in blockchain, I think it’s a really compelling technology,” Fils-Aimé said. “I’m also a believer in the concept of “play to own” within video games, and I say this as a player where I may have invested 50 hours, 100 hours, or 300 hours in a game, and when I’m ready to move on to something else, wouldn’t it be great to monetise what I’ve built?”These comments follow widespread disregard for the blockchain and associated ideas from developers and players, as earlier this month CCP games shut down the idea that NFTs and the blockchain would appear in EVE Online.“I bet I’d have some takers here today if I wanted to sell my Animal Crossing island from the latest Nintendo Switch version; I’d like to be able to monetise that.

Kevin Smith has shared further details about his new horror film KillRoy Was Here, which is set to be the first film ever released as an NFT.Directed and by Smith and based on a script he co-wrote with Andy McElfresh, the horror anthology features a creature that kills evil adults on behalf of their traumatised child victims. Smith also produced the film with Jordan Monsanto and David Shapiro.KillRoy Was Here will be released as an NFT that also includes exclusive content from the film, behind-the-scenes footage, and a commentary track (per Deadline).

ordered to be shut down in 2010 following a court injunction that was issued by US federal court judge Kimba Wood.LimeWire is now set to return in its new guise as “a one-stop marketplace for artists and fans alike to create, buy and trade digital collectibles without the technical crypto requirements of the current NFT landscape”.Initially focusing on music, the company is aiming “to bring digital collectibles into the mainstream” and attract one million users in its first year “through partnerships with major artists in the music industry”.LimeWire say that music fans will be able to buy and trade a variety of “music-related assets” on their marketplace, including limited edition releases, pre-release music, unreleased demos, graphical artwork, exclusive live versions, digital merchandise and backstage content.A collaborative line-up featuring “big names in the music industry” is set to be announced when LimeWire officially relaunches in May, while artists and creators who are interested in being part of the marketplace can use the LimeWire waitlist page to sign up for early access.LimeWire co-CEO Paul Zehetmayr said in a statement that “the biggest challenge with digital collectibles and the broader crypto market in general is that it’s really limited to a small group of savvy users”.“There are big players on the market already, but the entry barrier is still too big to allow for mainstream adoption. Most music fans do not own any cryptocurrency or have access to a crypto wallet, let alone understand the mechanics of collectibles on the blockchain.

Valve president Gabe Newell recently spoke out about the metaverse, and is not entirely sold on the concept overall.Speaking to PC Gamer, when asked if he believes metaverse trends are pushing technology forward, Newell responded, “There’s a bunch of get rich quick schemes around metaverse. Most of the people who are talking about metaverse have absolutely no idea what they’re talking about, and they’ve apparently never played an MMO.

Pussy Riot‘s Nadezhda Tolokonnikova has launched a new organisation that will sell NFTs to support the relief effort in Ukraine.Ukraine has officially severed diplomatic ties with Russia and declared martial law after Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered an attack on the neighbouring nation this week (February 24), with Ukraine saying that Putin had “launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine” (via BBC News).AS part of a new organisation called Ukraine DAO, created in association with Trippy Labs, Tolokonnikova will sell NFTs to support those in Ukraine suffering because of the Russian invasion. Earlier this year, Tolokonnikova and her Pussy Riot bandmate Nika Nikulshina were labelled as “foreign agents” by the Russian government.She explained on Twitter: “Welcome to @Ukraine_DAO.

Soulja Boy and Lil Yachty, and YouTube personality Jake Paul, are among the defendants in a class action lawsuit over an alleged cryptocurrency “pump and dump” scheme.As reported by ClassAction.org, a lawsuit claims that Soulja, Yachty and Paul, as well as musician Nick Carter and YouTuber Ben Phillips, were recruited by the company SafeMoon to misleadingly promote and sell the cryptocurrency token ‘V1’.It is alleged that the endorsements were intended to artificially inflate the currency’s value, allowing founder and CEO Braden John Karony and other executives to sell their holdings for a profit while numbers were high.The suit says that the so-called ‘pump and dump’ strategy saw the value of the SafeMoon token rise “astronomically” after its creation in March 2021. It claims that the trading volume for SafeMoon tokens shot up a staggering 875 percent within nine days of the celebrity-driven marketing campaign, peaking at $191.6 million on April 22, according to the complaint.Central to the lawsuit is SafeMoon’s promise to create a designated ‘wallet’, in which investors would “have a better place” to hold their tokens.

Boy George has announced the launch of an NFT collection titled CryptoQueenz, which has been created to mark the release of seven new songs.As reported by Rolling Stone, the musician will be unveiling 9,999 unique non-fungible tokens (NFTs) on the CryptoQueenz site and OpenSea from March 1. Each NFT will include the face of the famous Boy George artwork ‘Scarman’, combined with his renowned hat collection.Sales from each of the NFTs will also support the LGBTQ+ community, with two per cent of the proceeds going to the Elton John Aids Foundation and Shelter.

Lupe Fiasco‘s heavily bootlegged track ‘Hustlaz’ has finally hit streaming services just as the rapper prepares to launch his own range of NFT releases.The track originally appearing on 2006’s ‘Lupe The Jedi’ mixtape as ‘Hustlaz Due’, and was originally due to appear on his album ‘Food & Liquor’ before a leak of the album saw it disappear off the version that was eventually released.“I’m just a rose in weeds/And I rolls with reasons to stay on this road I lead,” Lu raps on the second’s second verse.

a limited-edition NFT of the “Charlie’s Angels” star’s iconic red swimsuit poster. The famous pin-up shot from 1976 showed the actress, then just 29, posing in a bathing suit. A poster of the image went on to sell more than 12 million copies.

NFTs), including 10 lifetime festival passes.The Indio, California festival, which is set to return this year from April 15-17 and 22-24, has partnered with the cryptocurrency exchange FTX for the new venture, which it says will operate in an “environmentally friendly marketplace”.The new NFT set, named ‘Coachella Collectibles’, is giving collectors the “opportunity to own lifetime festival passes, unlock unique on-site experiences, physical items and digital collectibles”.Among the NFT collections that are set to go up for sale on Friday (February 4) is the ‘Coachella Keys Collection’, billed as “10 NFT keys that grant you lifetime access to Coachella”.“This includes passes to one festival weekend every April and Coachella-produced virtual experiences… forever,” a description promises.A post shared by Coachella (@coachella)The owners of these 10 NFTs will also be given “unique experiences” at Coachella 2022, including “front and centre views at the Coachella Stage, lifetime Safari camping, or a dinner prepared by a professional chef in the Rose Garden”.“We’ve all seen how NFTs enable true ownership of art and media on the internet. We wanted to take it one step further and use NFTs to enable ownership of experiences in the real world, too,” Sam Schoonover, Innovation Lead for Coachella, said in a statement.“Only blockchain technology can give us the unique ability to offer tradable lifetime passes to Coachella for the first time ever.

NFT scammers.The TV presenter, writer and model seemed to tweet from her official account to her 1.3million followers this afternoon (February 1) with a giveaway on behalf of an NFT community called Azuki.“GIVING AWAY THIS AZUKI NFT ($23,239) To enter – Follow me with [notifications on] – RT & like this – Tag 3 friends,” the post reads.At the time of writing, two additional tweets have been posted from Chung’s account, one reading “Who has my notifications on?” and “Like if active, this is a test”, but it remains unclear whether Chung has regained control of her account.The account later tweeted: “No bs, following everyone who likes and replies.”No bs, following everyone who likes and replies— alexa (@alexa_chung) February 1, 2022Chung’s bio was also changed today, now reading: “simply a degen, marketing expert • DM For Promotions.”Representatives for Chung confirmed she had been hacked after being contacted by Rolling Stone UK – although there has been no word from Chung herself, nor an admission from Azuki.In other NFT news, John Lennon’s eldest son Julian is set to sell a range of non-fungible tokens featuring digitised pieces of Lennon and Beatles memorabilia from his personal collection.

The Last of Us and Sam Drake in Uncharted, has reversed plans to partner with a company aiming to create NFTs of actors’ voices.Baker announced his partnership with Voiceverse earlier this month (January 14), attracting criticism for supporting a company that many saw as potentially automating the performance work of voice actors. The announcement also drew significant backlash for Baker’s antagonistic tone, telling followers, “You can hate.

Lil Yachty has filed a trademark infringement lawsuit against the NFT platform Opulous.The rapper – real name Miles Parks McCollum – claimed that the company “maliciously” used his name and likeness to raise more than $6.5million (£4.86million) in venture capital funds (via Rolling Stone).McCollum stated in the filing that he only engaged in a couple of exploratory conference calls with Opulous in May 2021, which included the Singapore-based company’s founder and Ditto Music CEO, Lee Parsons.Yachty claimed “no agreement or deal terms” were reached, and that he never saw any of the money raised.According to the lawsuit, however, Opulous announced in a press release on June 2, 2021 that a “series of unmissable NFT drops” would be “led by world-famous artists including Lil Yachty”.

Blockverse, an unofficial NFT project for Minecraft, have gone quiet after raising £975,000 through a public mint.On January 23, Blockverse launched their public sale of 10,000 NFTs that would enable owners access to a play-to-earn Minecraft server “allowing for teamwork and competition. $DIAMONDS are generated through combat and playtime,” reads their whitepaper.Costing 0.05 Ethereum (£97) to mint, all the tokens sold out in eight minutes.

NFTs of some of its most famous guitar designs.According to a report by Billboard, the manufacturer has disclosed its intention to sell NFTs that contain images of its Les Paul, Flying V and Thunderbird guitars – among others – to the federal trademark office.In the documents, obtained by Billboard, Gibson Brands Inc. applied for trademarks covering the “uniquely shaped body” of six of its signature guitars.It comes after ESP Guitars launched NFTs of some of its guitars last year as well as a number of musicians.Earlier this month, Keith Richards announced details of a guitar-based NFT that will be auctioned off for charity this month.The Rolling Stones guitarist has partnered with the “green NFT platform” OneOf for the auction, which will raise funds for the Grammys’ music charity MusiCares.As well as the Richards NFT, the auction lot includes a black Gibson ES-335 electric-acoustic guitar hand-signed by Richards.

CNBC report details that since Facebook announced that it would be making the move towards the metaverse, prices of virtual reality plots have shot up by 500 per cent in the last few months.According to the report, the Toronto-based company Tokens.com, has dropped $2.5million USD (£1.84million GBP) on a patch of virtual land in Decentraland – a metaverse based around crypto with its own currency.“The metaverse is the next iteration of social media,” said Andrew Kiguel, CEO of Tokens.com, which invests in NFTs and metaverse real estate. “You can go to a carnival, you can go to a music concert, you can go to a museum.”Meanwhile, another virtual real estate development company, Republic Realm, also spent $4.3million USD (£3.1million GBP) buying a plot of land in Atari’s The Sandbox metaverse.The metaverse refers to 3D virtual worlds based on the idea of a new way of social interaction.

Brian Eno has explained why he doesn’t agree with the current NFT craze, saying it allows artists to be “little capitalist assholes”.Hundreds of artists have begun selling music, artwork and other items as NFTs (non-fungible tokens) this year, with the crypto content criticised by many due to the format’s effect on climate change.In a new interview with The Crypto Syllabus, Eno was asked about his views on NFTs, and why he hadn’t released anything in the format yet.He replied: “I’ve been

‘DONDA’ vest, said to have been worn by Kanye West at his Atlanta listening party for the new album this summer, has sold alongside an NFT at auction for $75,000 (£56,000).The sale features the vest, which features a hand-painted “DONDA” logo and is signed by Kanye with the acronym “MBD” (meaning My Body Different, the name of the security firm that worked the August 5 event in Atlanta).Alongside the vest itself is an NFT described as a “digital representation” of the vest worn during the

Post Malone, Jimmy Fallon and NBA star Steph Curry are among the current owners of Bored Ape NFTs.Each NFT in the collection – the cheapest of which is currently valued at $210,000 (£158,666) – grants its owner membership to the ‘Yacht Club’ in question and access to further events and perks, while owners often display their Bored Ape NFTs as their profile picture on social media.The $300,000-valued Bored Ape number 3,547 was sold last Saturday (December 11), but went for just $3000 after its

NFT collector has spent $450,000 (£339,837) for a plot of virtual land to be Snoop Dogg‘s neighbour in the rapper’s new interactive world.‘Snoopverse’ is a digital community that resides within The Sandbox, an Ethereum-based platform for creating and monetising online hangout spaces and gaming experiences.By being Snoop’s virtual neighbour, fans will be given access to exclusive, members-only parties at a digital replica of his California mansion – which is currently still being

Meek Mill has announced he’ll be releasing the fifth and final mixtape in his ‘Dreamchasers’ series as an NFT.The ‘Expensive Pain’ rapper took to Instagram to share a snippet of new music, whilst penning “#DCPOUNDCAKE LAST DREAMCHASER MIXTAPE A NFT ….

NFT of herself for over £90,000.The NFT of the popular Twitch steamer went on sale a few days ago and was already valued at a bid of $120,000 by November 5. As Siragusa said in a tweet, “Wow, an NFT of me is currently bid up to $120k… I guess I’ll be doing this again lol.”Part of the OnlyPunks NFT collection, the streamer’s NFT is just one of many NSFW NFTs to be sold.