Iconic rap artists Eminem and Snoop Dogg are set to perform at MTV’s Video Music Awards (VMAs) this Sunday, August 28th. The performance will be inspired by the BAYC (Bored Ape Yacht Club) NFT collection and Otherside Metaverse.
The duo will be performing their hit single “From the D 2 The LBC” in a metaverse-inspired setting, while also promoting the BAYC NFTs. The song was released back in June, and its music video was themed around both artists’ owned BAYC collection. The video has over 46 million views on Youtube.
‘Otherside’ is a gamified metaverse, which is developed in collaboration between Yuga Labs and Animoca Brands. During the performance, the VMA will transform its stage to the style of Otherside. To catch this groundbreaking performance live, viewers have to tune into MTV this Sunday, as the award show goes live at 8 p.m. Eastern Time.
Both Snoop Dog and Eminem are major advocates of non-fungible tokens. Earlier this year, Eminem purchased a Bored Ape collection worth $450,000. Snoop Dog is also a major investor in the NFT space, and he actively promotes non-fungible assets through his podcasts and interviews. He also has his own non-fungible collection called ‘The Doggies’ – which was released in collaboration with the Sandbox.
VMA 2022 is embracing the metaverse and NFTs
This year, the VMA is heavily promoting metaverse projects to influence wider mainstream exposure. There is also a new award category this year labelled ‘Best Metaverse Performance’. Nominees of this category include Justin Bieber, Twenty One Pilots, and Rift Tour FT. Ariana Grande.
Collaborating with metaverse projects might be the VMAs strategy to revamp its viewership numbers. The show’s last highest recorded viewership was in 2011, with 12.4 million views. Since then, there has been a continuous decline, with an average view of 900,000 in the last 8 years.
It looks like the award show is finally ready to step out of its grave with an exciting lineup of performances this year. It will be Eminem and Snoop’s first collaboration in two decades, and the duo is also up for the ‘Best Hip Hop’ award. Other legendary performances set to air in this year’s ceremony include Nickie Minaj, Marshmallow, Lizzo, and Måneskin.
