Serenade strikes ‘groundbreaking’ NFT partnership with Brit Awards

Serenade scores its biggest coup to date, by striking a partnership with the Brit Awards.

Through what’s described as a “groundbreaking initiative,” Serenade will honour the winners of next month’s BRITS with limited-edition NFTs, which will be available in the hours after the big show.

The digital trophies are created by West Midlands-born digital artist MRE, and cost £10 ($19), with each transaction going into the draw to win tickets for next year’s Brit Awards.

The Brits will be presented Feb. 8 at The O2 arena in London, and the NFTs will be available from Feb. 9, with purchases through credit or debit card over at serenade.co.

All told, 13 categories will be celebrated with collectibles, numbering 250 editions.

Proceeds will be donated to The BRIT Trust, the charity arm of The BRITs which pumps money into The BRIT School and Nordoff-Robbins Music Therapy.

Masterminded by whizz kid Max Shand, Serenade has grown and evolved in the past 12 months, from an artist-to-fan performance platform, to an eco-friendly NFT specialist with operations on both sides of the globe.

After rolling out in Australia in 2020, Serenade expanded into the U.K. last year with a range of NFTs from new and unreleased performances, to music, documentary footage, rare visuals and more.

In the Serenade model, fans can build a profile, showcase and chat about their collectibles. Artists get 85% of the initial sale of their work. Each time an NFT is sold and re-sold, the artist earns a 15% cut.

The Brit Awards will be the first-ever U.K. awards show to partner with an NFT platform, and, in a vote of confidence for Shand and his business, organisers went with an Australian company, rather than a local enterprise.

Shand paid tribute to The Brit Awards’ legacy of “innovation and philanthropy” and hints at much more to come. “It’s a pleasure to work with such a credible and forward looking institution as The BRITs,” he says in a statement, “and we look forward to a long, strategic partnership.”

Nominees this year include Adele, Dave, Ed Sheeran, Little Simz, Sam Fender, Dua Lipa, Billie Eilish, Olivia Rodrigo, Central Cee, and the winner of the BRITs Rising Star award has already been revealed as Holly Humberstone.

“We wanted to find a new way for fans to commemorate their favourite artists winning a Brit Award,” explains Luke Ferrar, Innovation Director, Polydor Records and co-Chair of BRITs Digital Committee.

“Creating a unique NFT felt like an interesting and different approach, and by pricing them at a reasonable cost, it allows more people to enter the emerging space of blockchain/digital art.”

MRE, he continues, “is an incredible digital artist and I hope these can be displayed and remembered for years to come and that it challenges conventional ways to own and share a moment with an artist, at the same time raising money for charity.”

Visit brits.serenade.co for more.

This article originally appeared on The Industry Observer, which is now part of The Music Network.