TIMBALAND PRESENTS “CONGO” NFT
MUSIC LEGEND RELEASES HIS BORED APE’S FIRST NFT MUSIC VIDEO “HAS A MEANING”
GRAMMY Award-winning super-producer, entrepreneur, and music legend Timbaland (@timberland) – renowned for cultivating some of the best artists in the real world – has now channeled his incredible talent and energy into the Metaverse with the introduction of Congo (@AWACongo_), his musical NFT alter ego. Originally dubbed as Bored Ape #590, Timbaland has christened him “Congo”, this character creation is part of the Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC or just “Bored Ape”), the culture creating NFT community living on the Ethereum (ETH) blockchain. The song and video “Has a Meaning” by Congo debuted in New York last (Thursday) at the BAYC Ape Fest event surrounding the NFT NY gathering.
The epicenter of countless ground-breaking collaborations, Timbaland’s use of his NFT Ape avatar as an alias to release new music and videos was a pioneering choice. Before work could get underway, he relentlessly searched the globe to discover and leverage a hand selected team of experts in the new space. For Congo, Timbaland ultimately partnered with emerging Web3 talent Zayd Portillo (@creatrgod), to produce and direct this first animated music video. Where others may have given up in the quest to create something never done before, Timbaland persevered, and it paid off. Reflecting on the journey and the mindset that made it happen, he says, “Creativity means starting. Just going forward. This video wouldn’t exist if we believed in limitations.”
With the right team assembled, Timbaland fully immersed himself in every step of the process. First, the superstar producer recorded and produced the song before partnering with Portillo to bring the music video to life using Unreal Engine (@UnrealEngine), a 3D creation tool well known for its hyper realistic visuals and immersive experiences. Timbaland himself, played both lead motion-capture roles in the video, donning a high-tech suit of sensors and cameras that track everything from gravitational pull and motion to subtle facial expressions and eye movements to create insanely realistic CGI characters.
While most PFP NFTs live as static character images in digital wallets, as a dynamic music star Congo stands out from his NFT community of BAYC, a unique star created from the full freedom (and commercialization rights) holders maintain allowing for them to be used in various applications and appearances. The apes of BAYC can be used to create anything their owners can imagine, which – in the hands of Timbaland – has generated a high wattage new performer with boundless potential and possibility. Congo’s “Has A Meaning” serves as proof of the creative potential of NFTs for both collectors and creators alike – and will undoubtedly be looked upon as the first iteration of a brand-new media form and a big step forward for the Web3 space.
Set for release on glass.xyz on June 30th, viewers of the music video will also be able to download the song as an MP3 via a claimable AirDrop. The mint, a limited edition of 100, will go live on the same day at 5:30 pm ET.
