Quick take:
- Kanye West has filed 17 trademark applications for his brand, Yeezus.
- Two applications mention “metaverse experiences” and “non-fungible assets.”
- One of the filings also covers “providing an online marketplace for buyers of blockchain-based non-fungible collectibles.”
After posting a handwritten note on Instagram in January, saying “DO NOT ASK ME TO DO A FUCKING NFT, ASK ME LATER” in all-caps, it appears that Kanye West is finally ready to head into the Web3 space.
On May 27, the rapper and fashion designer filed 17 new trademark applications with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), two of which mention “metaverse experiences” and “non-fungible assets.” One filing in particular mentions the following:
- providing an online marketplace for buyers of crypto and/digital collectibles, currencies, tokens and assets
- providing an online marketplace for buyers of blockchain-based non-fungible collectibles, assets, currencies and tokens
- operating on-line marketplaces featuring digital and crypto collectibles and blockchain-based non-fungible assets, currencies and tokens
- providing an online retail store services featuring downloadable movies, videos, television, music, entertainment, digital art, and non-fungible currencies, assets and tokens
The filings were revealed in a tweet by trademark attorney Josh Gerben earlier today.
Most of West’s Yeezus trademark filings are for physical products such as video games, retail stores, amusement parks, cosmetics, bedding and more. In West’s January Instagram post railing against NFTs, he declared that his focus was on “building real products in the real world.” The post has since been removed from his Instagram page.
If and when West enters the NFT space, he will join other musicians and rappers including Ice Cube, who owns NFT basketball league, BIG3, as well as Snoop Dogg, who has been influential in the NFT space over the past year, with the purchase and release of several NFTs and collaborations with The Sandbox.
In March, late rapper Biggie’s intellectual property company, Notorious B.I.G., LLC, filed metaverse and NFT trademarks. He will be brought back to life via his hyperrealistic metaverse, The Brook, launching later this year. Visitors to The Brook will be able to buy and sell NFTs, attend concerts and more.
Another rapper, Nas, dropped his first music NFT collection on American DJ 3LAU’s platform, Royal, in January, causing the platform’s server to crash due to high demand.
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