Iggy Azalea took Wall Street by storm today with her visit to the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). Sharing a video from CNBC’s set on X (formerly Twitter), she confidently asked, “How much money have I made you guys today?” The response from her team was a loud “A lot!”
Also Read: Iggy Azalea’s MOTHER Token Records 1,880% Hike In 2 Days
Then she raised the stakes, “Do you think I would be able to reach a $300 million market cap by the end of the day?” Her team didn’t hesitate: “Of course you can.” And Iggy sealed it with, “Exactly, of course, I can!” Hours before that, CNBC’s Jim Cramer had shared a picture with Iggy, captioning it, “With Iggy Azalea, after opening bell!”
Iggy makes waves in crypto and Wall Street
A few weeks ago, the Australian rapper launched a meme coin she founded on Solana. She decided to name it after the popular internet slang ‘Mother,’ reserved for cool, successful, iconic women in pop culture. And it has been a ride ever since!
Iggy describes MOTHER as a token meant to disrupt, create chaos, and, most importantly, have fun. The goal isn’t just to trade memes but to educate outsiders about crypto in a fun and approachable way. Iggy wants to be a “godmother” to regular folks and celebrities, guiding them into the crypto world.
Iggy has been actively promoting MOTHER on her social media platforms, especially to her 7.6 million followers on X. She’s also been vocal about her struggles with fitting into the crypto community, vowing not to stop until MOTHER goes to zero. She quickly realized that community is the driving force behind crypto projects and has said that she believes if more people understood this, they’d find crypto much more appealing. Forbes featured MOTHER recently, too, enhancing the whole thing’s legitimacy.
Iggy clashes with Vitalik Buterin
Iggy’s entry into crypto hasn’t been without controversy. She recently had a public spat with Vitalik Buterin, the highly respected co-founder of Ethereum. Buterin criticized celebrity tokens like MOTHER for lacking purpose and being financial gimmicks. He expressed dissatisfaction with the current cycle of celebrity experimentation in the crypto market.
Also Read: Celebrity Meme Coins Flood the Crypto Market
In true Iggy fashion, she fired back with a photoshopped image of herself breastfeeding an infant Buterin, captioned, “He was just hangry.” This sparked a heated debate and criticism within the crypto community. Iggy didn’t stop there. She further accused Buterin of pocketing gas fees, questioning his use of gas money and his opinions on charities and hospitals.
This bizarre statement drew ridicule from the crypto community, many of whom were surprised by her misunderstanding of how gas fees work on a blockchain network. Adam Cochran, a partner at Cinneamhain Ventures, weighed in on the situation.
He stated that Iggy’s remarks highlight the marketing challenge of crypto. “Iggy thinking Vitalik takes the fees represents the marketing challenge crypto has. It’s also why I think L2s are the only way it reaches mass consumer adoption. Just like most consumers don’t understand the internet, and rely on their ISP managing connectivity.”
Cryptopolitan reporting by Jai Hamid
