Blockchain Can Catapult Crypto Content Creators of Color, if We Engage Early!
Why am I a blockchain evangelist?
It’s because of the potential for entrepreneurs to build on the technology, the limitlessness of currency backed by human talent, and the possibilities inherent in decentralized human connectivity.
Let’s look at the basics.
Blockchain is technology. There are various types — public and private.
It powered the now mainstream bitcoin cryptocurrency and others, such as XRP, IOTA, etc.
It also incubated the profitable cryptoKitties craze.
The fundamental difference between cryptocurrency and blockchain is important to grasp as this frenzy mounts.
At a recent forum in New York City, Kevin Chen from IOTA Blockchain Foundation discussed the future of blockchain and the need for more research and data marketplace to help educate early, new, and late adopters.
Let’s face it, there is much confusion around all the buzz.
For lack of a better analogy, conceptualize blockchain like the once mysterious behemoth we now refer to fondly as the internet.
Think of all that has manifest in just the last two decades since popular adaptation of the internet and the many ways society has been transformed by public accessibility.
Now consider blockchain similarly. Think of all the types of transactions we perform locally, nationally, globally — personal, professional, official, geo-political.
Blockchain is the little engine that will!
It decentralizes — cutting out the middlemen.
It authenticates — allowing for validation and tracking.
It monetizes — enabling new currencies to be exchanged.
What’s the point beyond automation and optimization?
Another factor that may be fueling this evolution is increasing distrust of traditional institutions, mainstream establishment, and status quo.
And the impact is predicted to be widespread.
There are already conversations about how the financial sector will be streamlined and made more efficient. That remains to be seen.
In the meantime, the prospects for creatives are exploding.
Storytellers, musicians, comic book creators, photographers, graphic designers, podcasters, and others can reclaim autonomy and control leveraging blockchain technology.
A great example is ConsenSys, a venture that now boast about 40 startups among its blockchain platforms, focusing primarily on Ethereum.
It’s fascinating how ConsenSys’ Ujo Music empowers musicians to publish, monetize, and navigate licensing and intellectual property hurdles.
“You’ll have an Ujo portal, where you can manage your catalogue, but you’ll also be able to push that over to your own Ujo store and sell your stuff in Ether. It will demonstrate the entire supply chain of what we can do,” says product lead Jack Spallone. “There’s a long-term vision here of a more fair trade music ecosystem.”
Content creators of colors cannot afford to be late adopters. The starting point is simply to jump in now at year zero, learning, and forging their unique space.
While experts predict blockchain is here to stay and will jumpstart the markets and industries of the future, they also admit this revolution is still very much shifting, morphing, and evolving.
Don’t get left!
Cleve Mesidor, a content creator based in NYC, is Founder of #THECLEVOLUTION. Follow her on Twitter @cmesi and on Instagram @cmesidor