The Weeknd Announces an NFT Deal with Binance

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On June 2nd, The Weeknd tweeted he’s working with the crypto exchange Binance to bring Web3 into his “After Hours Til Dawn” tour. The Canadian-born musician says Binance will help develop “new creative ways” to both “connect” with fans and donate to charities.  

On the same day, Binance tweeted that it was “excited” to partner with The Weeknd on his summer concert series. The crypto exchange also said it would give $2 million to The UN’s XO Humanitarian Fund. The Weeknd created the XO Fund to help feed communities at risk of famine. 

According to recent reports, anyone who attends one of The Weeknd’s IRL concerts could redeem an NFT collectible. Binance and The Weeknd are working with the Canadian company HXOUSE to develop more NFT collections connected to “After Hours Til Dawn.” 

There’s no set timeline for future NFT drops, and it’s unclear whether Binance will use the metaverse at The Weeknd’s concerts. However, Binance promises to donate 5 percent of NFT sales related to this tour to The Weeknd’s UN-backed fund. 

The Weeknd is no stranger to the NFT community. In 2021, the singer-songwriter worked with Strange Loop Studios to create an NFT drop for Nifty Gateway. The Weeknd is also an official partner on Tom Brady’s NFT site Autograph. 

The Weeknd’s “After Hours Til Dawn” tour will begin on July 8th in Toronto’s Rogers Centre.

Musicians Make the Most of the Metaverse 

Besides minting special NFT collections, it’s unknown how Binance will use Web3 in The Weeknd’s summer tour. However, if The Weeknd brought the metaverse into the mix, he wouldn’t be the first musician to do so.

There are dozens of recording artists that use the extra immersion of metaverse platforms to better connect with fans. For instance, DJ Kaskade recently headlined a “FutureFest” concert on the Cardano blockchain. Noted NFT collector & pop sensation Justin Bieber also hosted a metaverse concert on Wave. 

Rarity Sniper recently discovered the English singer Charli XCX is working on a live metaverse show on Roblox. Speaking of Roblox, socialite and Web3 enthusiast Paris Hilton DJed last year’s New Year’s Party on the popular metaverse game.   

Major music corporations are also taking note of using Web3 technologies for live entertainment. For instance, Warner Music Group scooped up a massive chunk of land in The Sandbox metaverse for digital concerts. 

Whether The Weeknd will offer metaverse experiences for “After Hours Til Dawn” is still up for debate. However, it’s unlikely there will be fewer live music events in the metaverse as Web3 continues to grow.