Damon Albarn of Blur established Gorillaz in 1998, a “virtual” band of animated musicians made by artist Jamie Hewlett, with actual, known musicians playing the “band’s” songs. To demonstrate that everything old is new again, OneRepublic’s Ryan Tedder and DJ/producer Kygo have collaborated to build their own “virtual” band…made solely of their cartoon NFTs.
Ryan and Kygo both have “Bored Ape” NFTs, which feature a variety of cartoon apes generated by an algorithm. Justin Bieber and Madonna are among the other celebrities that have purchased Bored Ape NFTs. Ryan and Kygo have formed Bored Brothers, a “metaverse band.”
Bored Brothers’ first “single” — which is also an NFT, of course — will be released on Friday at 5 p.m. ET. It’s referred to as “DRIP.” According to the description, the Bored Brothers’ music is “focused largely on dance and hip-hop” and “stems from an overwhelming drive to pick and make music beyond our genres.”
OneRepublic and Kygo have previously collaborated on a few songs, the most recent of which being “Lose Someone,” which was released in 2020.
