https://ift.tt/Wcspm0D6B Festival offers Lifetime Passes with new NFT marketplace

Setting the stage for the future of NFT’s at festivals, Coachella has teamed up with FTX US to build an environmentally friendly NFT marketplace on Solana Blockchain. For the first time, Coachella is selling lifetime festival passes but you have to buy an NFT to get your hands on one. The world-renowned music festival is attended by approximately 250,000 people every year with headline acts from some of the biggest names in the business.

Lifetime passes to the Coachella Festival are up for grabs

Coachella will auction off the Coachella Keys Collection, a special group of 10 NFTs that allows its holders to receive lifetime tickets to the festival. Owners of the keys will get festival passes every year and free entry to Coachella virtual experiences. 

As part of the new marketplace built with Solana, there will be three NFT specific collections that will include special perks, including front row access at the 2022 festival and a celebrity chef dinner. In addition to the 10 lifetime-pass NFTs, Coachella will sell 1,000 NFTs priced at $180 that buyers can use to redeem a physical Coachella photo book. The third collection of NFTs will be of “fan-favorite festival photos and never before heard soundscapes,” priced at $60 apiece. 

Merging the world of NFTs with real-life experiences

Attaching NFTs to experiences is fast becoming a trend in the events world and it is no surprise that festivals would take advantage of the opportunity to provide fans with more reasons to interact with the brand, creating a loyal following through the collection of affiliated digital goods. Traditional brands recognize that many creative musicians and celebrities are getting involved in the world of NFTs. DeadMau5, Grimes, 3LAU and other high-profile musicians are launching their own NFT projects. What better way for Coachella to show that they are part of the latest music innovation than by building their own dedicated marketplace. 

Ticketing with NFTs is also not so new in the world of blockchain as the NFL chose to have NFT tickets for select games and the recently announced After Party Art and Music Festival are using NFTs as the primary form of ticket that acts as an all-access pass and give holders tangible rewards that can be had in both the metaverse world and in real-time. 

In November, Coachella parent company AEG renamed the Staples Center the Crypto.com Arena. Minted on Solana, the company plans to donate a portion of NFT sales to GiveDirectly, Lideres Campesinas, and Find Food Bank.