Monthly trading volume of nonfungible tokens, or NFTs, hit a record high of over $6 billion in January, according to data from The Block.
Though many celebrities have cashed in on the hype, Kanye West isn’t interested in the booming market just yet.
“Stop asking me to do NFTs,” West wrote to his 10.5 million Instagram followers on Monday. “For now I’m not on that wave.”
Instead, “I make music and products in the real world,” the rapper and designer said.
The post included an image of a handwritten note, where West reiterated that his “focus” is on “building real products in the real world,” like “real food real clothes real shelter.”
NFTs are digital assets that represent ownership of things like art, music and in-game items, among many others. Each is tracked and verified on the blockchain.
Though it doesn’t correspond with copyright ownership (unless otherwise specified), NFTs have sold for millions of dollars and are trading as valuable collectibles.
As the demand for NFTs exploded in 2021, notable artists like Eminem, Justin Bieber, DJ Khaled and Post Malone have reportedly bought NFTs themselves, while other big names and athletes, like Paris Hilton, Steve Aoki and Tom Brady, have listed NFTs and created NFT-related products for their fans.
Those in the crypto space predict that 2022 will be the year of music NFTs, saying that the tech will “inevitably change everything about music distribution and rewire the foundation of the music industry,” CoinDesk reported.
Nonetheless, West is opting out for now: “Ask me later,” he wrote on Instagram.
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