Enjin scales RWAs and NFTs to millions of artists with tokenized vinyl records

With 50 million vinyl records sold in 2023, Enjin, together with George Murphy and The Rising Sons, have set their sights on impacting millions of music artists and listeners with tokenized vinyl records.

George Murphy, a triple platinum selling music artist and Irish songwriter, has entered the Enjin Ecosystem to deliver a music vinyl packed with a digital experience.

The tokenized vinyl highlights the power of Enjin Blockchain as a medium of facilitating digital ownership and real-world assets. RWAs, short for real-world assets, are tokens that symbolize specific physical assets.

A Synthesis of Music and Technology

The vinyl project represents the partnership of 3 Enjin Ecosystem participants:

1. George Murphy and the Rising Sons: The latest entrant into the Ecosystem. The band developed the music and intellectual property on the vinyl.
2. New York Culture Club: Known for its innovative fashion tech, NYCC has made a mark at events like New York Fashion Week. It specializes in embedding NFC chips into items, creating immersive digital experiences.
3. The Squirrel: An NFT.io-hosted NFT comic created by Bob and Kevin, brothers-in-law. They focus on hand-drawn art, avoiding Artificial Intelligence. Their art complements the music project. Meanwhile, the duo will be creating the NFT

The vinyl will feature artwork and includes George Murphy and The Rising Sons’ studio songs on side A and live tracks on side B. Owners can tap their NFC-enabled phones on the vinyl to verify ownership and unlock a tokenized asset.

Once an owner taps their smartphone on the vinyl, this triggers an Enjin NFT-certificate of authenticity, held on NFT.io.

These NFTs are linked to the vinyl, making them real-world assets of playable music.

Each vinyl comes with its own unique artwork. In addition, only 200 vinyls and their corresponding RWAs ever will come into existence, making this a limited and exclusive opportunity.

Enjin Blockchain’s Transformative Power

As an artist based in Europe, George did not encounter blockchain much. However, a previous encounter with The Squirrel in New York City had grown into a close friendship.

Bob, co-creator of The Squirrel, revealed to George about NFTs and the opportunities it could offer for the band to draw closer to their audience.

Deepening Engagement with 600 Million Listeners

More than 600M people listen to their favorite artists with online streaming platforms.

While these music platforms have revolutionized music distribution, they often limit how artists can interact with their fans. These platforms typically control the presentation and monetization, leaving artists with fewer opportunities to engage directly with their audience.

Real-world assets empower artists to bypass these limitations by directly connecting with their listeners. An RWA can encapsulate not just music but a whole spectrum of fan experiences.

George Murphy and The Rising Sons are exploring innovative ways to deepen connections with their audience using real-world assets. These digital tokens offer more than just proof of ownership—they can serve as keys to a unique array of fan experiences.

Getting closer to our audience through an NFT, whether it offers proof of ownership of a tune, concert ticket, special sneak peaks, messaging, live digital concerts or all those things are all ideas we are thinking of.

- George Murphy

Owning a specific real-world asset could grant access to limited-edition artwork or special edition tracks. These tokens can act as memberships that unlock special privileges, enhancing the fan's involvement with the creative world.

Creating Economic Opportunities for Millions of Artists

With NFTs, artists gain unprecedented control over their content. This technology allows musicians like George to manage how their music is distributed, shared, and monetized without the need for intermediaries. This direct control can help preserve the artistic integrity of their work, ensuring that it reaches the audience as intended.

Traditional sales can tend to leave out both those sides too much, plus NFTs allow us more control of the content, and gives fans an opportunity to more directly engage so that we can put out some of the best to come.

The direct engagement facilitated by NFTs can also lead to richer fan experiences, which in turn can enhance the music’s value. Fans who feel a stronger connection to the artist and their journey are more likely to support them through purchasing merchandise and participating in fan-driven projects.

Furthermore, with Enjin Blockchain’s on-chain royalties, artists receive a predefined percentage of sales whenever their NFTs are resold on any Enjin marketplace. This adds a sustainable revenue stream that continues long after the initial sale.

A New Paradigm for Music Experience

George Murphy and The Rising Sons' venture into NFTs and RWAs marks a transformative chapter in their musical journey.

Through Enjin's suite of tools, they utilize blockchain to enhance their artistic expression and pioneer a new standard for how artists can interact with their fans. This strategic embrace of NFTs and RWAs positions George Murphy and The Rising Sons at the forefront of the digital music revolution, setting a compelling example for millions of artists worldwide.

We’re early, and if you’re reading this, you’re early too. That’s a challenge on its own. There’s not much precedent out there, it’s always tougher in that sense! We want to try out a few things and see what sticks.

About the Artist

George Murphy is an Irish singer songwriter and Triple Platinum artist. He burst onto the Irish music scene as a 17 year old after appearing on RTE Television’s You’re a Star.

He has sold out shows at major venues like Vicar’s Street. The iconic performing arts center in Dublin has hosted stars like Bob Dylan.

Today, George leads the eight-member band, The Rising Sons and is trailblazing the music scene with blockchain.

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