--- title: Black NFT Artists Believe They're This Generation's Hip-Hop description: Black NFT artists gathered in Harlem to assert their cultural vitality, build generational links, and affirm their long-term commitment to the space. canonical: https://time.com/6194057/harlem-nft-artists-hip-hop-jazz/ author: Andrew R. Chow article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2022-07-13T12:01:22.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-04-13T08:52:44.036Z article:section: Entertainment og:title: Black NFT Artists on Inheriting the Legacy of Hip-Hop and Jazz og:description: Black NFT artists gathered in Harlem to assert their cultural vitality, build generational links, and affirm their long-term commitment to the space. og:url: https://time.com/6194057/harlem-nft-artists-hip-hop-jazz/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt11fca58b34472406/698a337201168209849820b3/black-nft-artists-1.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2400 og:image:height: 1350 og:image:alt: black-nft-artists-1 og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Black NFT Artists on Inheriting the Legacy of Hip-Hop and Jazz twitter:description: Black NFT artists gathered in Harlem to assert their cultural vitality, build generational links, and affirm their long-term commitment to the space. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt11fca58b34472406/698a337201168209849820b3/black-nft-artists-1.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 --- # 'It Started From Nothing.' 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Terms and conditions apply. * Savings buckets are a feature of Ally Bank's Savings Account. * No ATM fees from Ally Bank at Allpoint and Moneypass ATMs plus we reimburse for fees charged by other ATM owners nationwide up to $10 per statement cycle. * Early direct deposit offers eligible direct deposits up to two days sooner. * Spending buckets are a feature of Ally Bank's Spending Account. ## Video: "It Started From Nothing": Black NFT Artists on Inheriting the Legacy of Hip-Hop and Jazz [Watch (HLS stream): "It Started From Nothing": Black NFT Artists on Inheriting the Legacy of Hip-Hop and Jazz](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/H4vFInUN.m3u8) (5:46)  _Published 2022-07-13. Every year, people from around the world pilgrimage to a leafy Harlem brownstone on E 126th Street in hopes of conjuring history. In June, a new group ascended the steps in the hopes of inserting themselves into the same legacy: Black NFT artists._ Jul 13, 2022 12:01 PM UTC  by [Andrew R. Chow](https://time.com/author/andrew-r-chow/)  ## Andrew R. Chow Correspondent Jul 13, 2022 12:01 PM UTC Every year, people from around the world pilgrimage to a leafy Harlem brownstone on E. 126th Street in hopes of conjuring history. It was there in 1958 that 57 jazz icons, from Thelonious Monk to Dizzy Gillespie, gathered to take a now-iconic [photo for Esquire Magazine](https://www.esquire.com/entertainment/a27476/jazz-photo-1959/). Forty years later, hip-hop royalty including Rakim, Grandmaster Flash, and A Tribe Called Quest crowded on the same steps for [XXL Magazine](https://www.gordonparksfoundation.org/education/features/a-great-day-in-hip-hop), staking their claim as generational inheritors of Black artistic excellence. In June, a new group ascended the steps in the hopes of inserting themselves into the same legacy: Black[ NFT artists](https://time.com/6106679/nft-art-rise/). Such a declaration might give some skeptics pause. Crypto has been one of the year’s [foremost cultural lightning rods](https://time.com/6175370/why-bitcoin-crashing/), as the crypto market has aggressively slumped, hacks and thefts have mounted, and pyramid schemes have caved onto themselves.  Black NFT artists gather at 17 E. 126th St in Harlem for a photo shoot led by Brandon Ruffin. Iconic portraits of jazz and hip-hop musicians were taken from the same stoop in 1958 and 1998. Gioncarlo Valentine for TIME But these artists and crypto builders are certain that there’s an unequivocal thruline between jazz, hip-hop, and the so-called Web 3\. They say crypto could be the key toward a brighter, more resilient future for Black artistry, and are adamant on continuing to bring their peers onboard, bear market and naysayers be damned. “It’s the same thing: It started from nothing,” says the rapper Fat Joe, who stood solemnly below the brownstone steps just as he had for the hip-hop shoot 26 years earlier. Referring to NFTs, he said, “It’s actually the only place where you can find an even playing field. It’s time to bring awareness and let everybody know that there’s opportunity for everyone.”  Fat Joe, who was photographed by Gordon Parks in 1998's A Great Day in Hip Hop, stands next to George Butler, who was photographed in Art Kane's 1958 A Great Day in Harlem. Gioncarlo Valentine for TIME It wasn’t so long ago that the number of Black people in the NFT community was close to zero. When the Oakland-based photographer Brandon Ruffin became interested in the space in November 2020, he found “not even a few” Black voices in NFT conversations on the audio chat app Clubhouse. “It would make you question, ‘Is this a place for us?,’” he recalls. But Ruffin, known as Ruff Draft, was still intrigued by the space, partly because it offered a stark alternative to the relentless churn of Instagram, one of the primary platforms he used to showcase his work. “On Instagram, I felt more restricted, like I really had to be anchored to the algorithm if I wanted to be relevant,” he says. “When I got on Clubhouse and met other photographers, I felt inspired and liberated from a lot of things that didn’t matter. It helped me focus on the art more, and made some really good friends.” Ruffin sold more than $40,000 worth of NFTs in December 2021 alone.  The artists, along with various members of the community, came out to the stoop photo recreation on Tuesday June 21. Gioncarlo Valentine for TIME Last November, the chef and event organizer Manouschka Guerrier showed up to [NFT.NYC](https://time.com/6115274/nft-conference-parties-culture/)—a series of lavish events that took the city by storm at the height of the bull market—and found that she was often the only Black woman in the room. “It was my Uber drivers or bartenders who would look at me, and start asking me questions about NFTs,” she says. “I found myself onboarding a lot of New Yorkers.” Little by little, Guerrier and others made concerted efforts to bring Black artists and builders into the NFT space via social media and word of mouth. A community grew. **Read More:** [_As the NFT Market Explodes Again, Artists Fend Off Old Art-World Power Structures_](https://time.com/6106679/nft-art-rise/) Encouraged by this growth, Guerrier became increasingly inspired by the space’s potential for decentralization and ownership, and the way it could open up a world where artists create freely, release their work to the public, and profit directly without the need for penny-pinching intermediaries. At the next NFT.NYC in June 2022, she had the idea to organize an event that would bring together a community that had previously only interacted digitally, plant a flag for its artistic primacy, and tie it back to a rich cultural past. So she sent out an open call for Black NFT artists and enthusiasts to come to Harlem on June 19th, to recreate the iconic jazz and hip-hop stoop photos. About 90 showed up, from key artists at the forefront of the NFT movement, like Ruff Draft and Cory Van Lew, a painter whose colorful works have [sold at Sotheby’s for ](https://www.sothebys.com/en/buy/auction/2021/contemporary-art-day-auction-4/patience)hundreds of thousands of dollars, to entrepreneurs like Nait Jones, a founder of the NFT music startup Royal. (Notable no-shows included: the photographer Drift, who takes photos from atop skyscrapers and has sold [millions worth of NFTs](https://cryptobriefing.com/drift-looks-back-first-day-out-jail-with-6-8m-nft-drop/), and the curator Diana Sinclair, who co-runs the Digital Diaspora series, and the hip-hop artist Latashá.)  Nait Jones, a founder of the NFT music startup Royal, left, and the rapper Ja Rule. Gioncarlo Valentine for TIME The event also drew an older, hip-hop oriented guard who believe that NFTs will be just as powerful for them as they will be for a younger generation. Many of hip-hop’s foremost elder statesmen have jumped into crypto, including Jay-Z, Nas, and Snoop Dogg. And in Harlem, a trio of beloved rappers who rose the prominence in the 90s—Fat Joe, Ja Rule, and Bun B—showed up to soak in the crowd and talk with younger artists. Former NBA star Metta World Peace, who launched his own [NFT community in April](https://www.newswire.com/news/metta-world-peace-launches-innovative-basketball-community-through-nft-21678988) and has long been enmeshed in hip-hop culture, also arrived, beaming. Ja Rule, who has several NFT ventures, spent most of his time at the event hyping up one of his proteges, the NFT artist Nick Davis, who created the art series [“Black is Beautiful.”](https://houseoffirst.com/collections/blackisbeautiful) “We’re so programmed to believe that only the art that was done many years ago is the art that’s valued the most. But such great art is being done today in the NFT and Web 3 space,” Ja Rule said. “My vision and dream is to have Nick be a household name like Basquiat or Rembrandt.” > [](https://twitter.com/blkgrlcrypto/status/1542176181071630338)  Photographer Brandon Ruffin orchestrating the stoop photo session. Gioncarlo Valentine for TIME The Web 3 space is still far from equitable, in terms of both race and class. A [recent study ](https://blog.chainalysis.com/reports/web3-daos-2022/)from the blockchain data firm Chainalysis found that in several major crypto communities known as DAOs, less than 1% of all token holders have 90% of voting power. Back in Harlem, event participants criticized the overwhelming whiteness of the NFT.NYC events downtown, and the tasteless monkey noises emanating from ApeFest, an event put on by the hyper-popular NFT collective, the Bored Ape Yacht Club. Guerrier says she understands why the NFT space receives criticism, and would like to help reorient some of its goals. With the June event, she wanted to show an alternative vision for the future of NFTs, one based not on rampant speculation but artistry; that is communal instead of extractive; that centers Black culture instead of copying it for profit, as the jazz, rock and hip-hop industries had done in generations past. “There’s some people who are just about money and clout. But for a lot of us in this space, it is about community, art, and love prevailing,” she says. “For Black people, generational wealth has eluded us for so long. Our creation of art and the way we express ourselves has inspired so many people, but we haven’t been financially rewarded. At least in this space, we get to do that.” Kai Miller, a digital strategist, echoed her comments, and pointed to NFTs as a potential solution toward the exploitative nature of the music industry. “When you’re getting into licensing and points on an album, you realize a lot of your favorite Black artists don’t even own their masters. Why did Michael Jackson and Jay-Z have to buy their masters back?” she says. “In the NFT space, ownership is from day one.”  Artists and NFT enthusiasts showcase NFT art from the Harlem stoop. Gioncarlo Valentine for TIME As the group marched across the streets of Harlem, they carried posters of Davis’s vibrant artwork and chanted “Black is beautiful.” Once at the stoop, it took a while for everyone to squeeze into Ruffin’s frame. It was Ja Rule, eventually, who took command, using his booming voice to direct people into the shot. Plenty of onlookers looked on, including George Butler, who was a part of the original 1958 day as a child, and remembered sitting for hours on the curb next to the pianist Count Basie. Fat Joe, who was at the 1998 shoot, reflected on the link between the two events. “Everywhere you looked, you saw hip hop royalty,” he said of the 1998 shoot. “I see what Ja \[Rule\] is trying to do here with the NFT world: pretty much trying to tap into the DNA of what was—and what’s going to be in the future.”  A Great Day in Hip-Hop, Harlem, New York, 1998 photographed by Gordon Parks. Gordon Parks—The Gordon Parks Foundation ## Transcript Kind: captions Language: en that's why I got into art I saw people that's why I got into art I saw people that's why I got into art I saw people that looked like me you know like that looked like me you know like that looked like me you know like Basquiat becoming like rock stars and I Basquiat becoming like rock stars and I Basquiat becoming like rock stars and I wanted to be a rock star myself so I wanted to be a rock star myself so I wanted to be a rock star myself so I wanted to do that with my artwork and wanted to do that with my artwork and wanted to do that with my artwork and here we are picture The Brownstone on East 126th picture The Brownstone on East 126th picture The Brownstone on East 126th Street in Harlem has a storied history Street in Harlem has a storied history Street in Harlem has a storied history in the art World in 1958 57 Jazz in the art World in 1958 57 Jazz in the art World in 1958 57 Jazz legendary musicians posed for arcane's legendary musicians posed for arcane's legendary musicians posed for arcane's photo known as the Great Dane Harlem photo known as the Great Dane Harlem photo known as the Great Dane Harlem then in 1998 then in 1998 then in 1998 177 hip-hop artists posed on the same 177 hip-hop artists posed on the same 177 hip-hop artists posed on the same stoop for the acclaimed photographer stoop for the acclaimed photographer stoop for the acclaimed photographer Gordon Parks in a picture called a great Gordon Parks in a picture called a great Gordon Parks in a picture called a great day in hip-hop and now in the summer of day in hip-hop and now in the summer of day in hip-hop and now in the summer of 2022 the group of black web 3 creatives 2022 the group of black web 3 creatives 2022 the group of black web 3 creatives working in the nft space are meeting on working in the nft space are meeting on working in the nft space are meeting on the same stoop to claim their own place the same stoop to claim their own place the same stoop to claim their own place in the history of the art world in the history of the art world in the history of the art world [Music] [Music] [Music] I've been doing art for a long time but I've been doing art for a long time but I've been doing art for a long time but photography they're like reinvigorated photography they're like reinvigorated photography they're like reinvigorated by like what I thought could be done by like what I thought could be done by like what I thought could be done like artistically in the way that I like artistically in the way that I like artistically in the way that I thought about art in a way and as far as thought about art in a way and as far as thought about art in a way and as far as nfts I had always been in the tech I was nfts I had always been in the tech I was nfts I had always been in the tech I was a little bit of an early adopter into a little bit of an early adopter into a little bit of an early adopter into crypto I guess and I love the idea of crypto I guess and I love the idea of crypto I guess and I love the idea of like decentralization and what that like decentralization and what that like decentralization and what that could do what that could mean uh for for could do what that could mean uh for for could do what that could mean uh for for the people and how that could change the the people and how that could change the the people and how that could change the way in which the distribution of power way in which the distribution of power way in which the distribution of power and the distribution of influence and and the distribution of influence and and the distribution of influence and the distribution of knowledge uh could the distribution of knowledge uh could the distribution of knowledge uh could be done more efficiently more fairly be done more efficiently more fairly be done more efficiently more fairly with more Equity the 2022 event was the with more Equity the 2022 event was the with more Equity the 2022 event was the brainchild of manushka Gary a chef and brainchild of manushka Gary a chef and brainchild of manushka Gary a chef and organizer often the only black woman at organizer often the only black woman at organizer often the only black woman at nft events Gary set up an open call for nft events Gary set up an open call for nft events Gary set up an open call for black nft artists to come to Harlem in black nft artists to come to Harlem in black nft artists to come to Harlem in the nft space the nft space the nft space we're standing on the shoulders of we're standing on the shoulders of we're standing on the shoulders of giants there's a lot of artists that giants there's a lot of artists that giants there's a lot of artists that died penniless that were never died penniless that were never died penniless that were never acknowledged or validated or given their acknowledged or validated or given their acknowledged or validated or given their flowers or anything and they were the flowers or anything and they were the flowers or anything and they were the really great artists who for jazz sat on really great artists who for jazz sat on really great artists who for jazz sat on the stoop and for hip-hop sat on the the stoop and for hip-hop sat on the the stoop and for hip-hop sat on the streets streets streets man man man you don't realize man you don't realize man you don't realize man Equity is so important say it again because I work in the music space myself because I work in the music space myself because I work in the music space myself so when you're getting into licensing so when you're getting into licensing so when you're getting into licensing and points on an album and you realize a and points on an album and you realize a and points on an album and you realize a lot of your favorite black artists don't lot of your favorite black artists don't lot of your favorite black artists don't even own their masters that's ridiculous even own their masters that's ridiculous even own their masters that's ridiculous why does Michael why did Michael Jackson why does Michael why did Michael Jackson why does Michael why did Michael Jackson have to buy his master's bag why did have to buy his master's bag why did have to buy his master's bag why did Jay-Z have to buy his mask Brianna why Jay-Z have to buy his mask Brianna why Jay-Z have to buy his mask Brianna why didn't why did Beyonce there's there's a didn't why did Beyonce there's there's a didn't why did Beyonce there's there's a lack of ownership but with what I'm lack of ownership but with what I'm lack of ownership but with what I'm learning with the nft space that's from learning with the nft space that's from learning with the nft space that's from day one so day one so day one so in what I'm building and you're along in what I'm building and you're along in what I'm building and you're along for the ride so ownership Equity so for for the ride so ownership Equity so for for the ride so ownership Equity so for black people like this is our first time black people like this is our first time black people like this is our first time that we can achieve something that has that we can achieve something that has that we can achieve something that has eluded us for so long which is eluded us for so long which is eluded us for so long which is generational wealth and the fact that we generational wealth and the fact that we generational wealth and the fact that we can do that can do that can do that by creating art our art the way we by creating art our art the way we by creating art our art the way we express ourselves the way we talk The express ourselves the way we talk The express ourselves the way we talk The Way We Walk has Way We Walk has Way We Walk has inspired so many people but we haven't inspired so many people but we haven't inspired so many people but we haven't really been financially rewarded you really been financially rewarded you really been financially rewarded you know you know it doesn't matter what know you know it doesn't matter what know you know it doesn't matter what your religion is what your race is if your religion is what your race is if your religion is what your race is if you want to learn about the business and you want to learn about the business and you want to learn about the business and you do this [ __ ] right you're gonna make you do this [ __ ] right you're gonna make you do this [ __ ] right you're gonna make some money some money some money for someone like myself I was one of the for someone like myself I was one of the for someone like myself I was one of the you know early you know I think I was if you know early you know I think I was if you know early you know I think I was if not I think it was the second person on not I think it was the second person on not I think it was the second person on super rare that was black and actually super rare that was black and actually super rare that was black and actually like selling artwork and [ __ ] so after like selling artwork and [ __ ] so after like selling artwork and [ __ ] so after me became like there was like a wave of me became like there was like a wave of me became like there was like a wave of artists they got to see somebody that artists they got to see somebody that artists they got to see somebody that looked like them that was selling looked like them that was selling looked like them that was selling artwork you know my goal my vision my artwork you know my goal my vision my artwork you know my goal my vision my dream is to dream is to dream is to have Nick be a household name why why have Nick be a household name why why have Nick be a household name why why can't Nick Davis be the next Boston or can't Nick Davis be the next Boston or can't Nick Davis be the next Boston or the next Rembrandt Castle the next Rembrandt Castle the next Rembrandt Castle thanks why not see we so trained thanks why not see we so trained thanks why not see we so trained programmed to to you know believe that programmed to to you know believe that programmed to to you know believe that who's artists only the art that is that has been done many many years ago that has been done many many years ago that has been done many many years ago as the art that's valued the most but as the art that's valued the most but as the art that's valued the most but there's such great art is being done there's such great art is being done there's such great art is being done today so to be able to come back and do today so to be able to come back and do today so to be able to come back and do this here and some people who were here this here and some people who were here this here and some people who were here here 40 years ago and 24 years ago and here 40 years ago and 24 years ago and here 40 years ago and 24 years ago and the neighborhood is just like embracing the neighborhood is just like embracing the neighborhood is just like embracing us and having us and showing that yeah a us and having us and showing that yeah a us and having us and showing that yeah a recent bear Market may have burst a recent bear Market may have burst a recent bear Market may have burst a bubble of the cryptocurrency markets bubble of the cryptocurrency markets bubble of the cryptocurrency markets this summer but the creators here say this summer but the creators here say this summer but the creators here say they are optimistic about the future of they are optimistic about the future of they are optimistic about the future of nfts nfts nfts as this bear Market changed how do you as this bear Market changed how do you as this bear Market changed how do you think about the space at all you guys think about the space at all you guys think about the space at all you guys here to stay in the long run here to stay in the long run here to stay in the long run you know no one wants to hear but bear you know no one wants to hear but bear you know no one wants to hear but bear markets are healthy for the market like markets are healthy for the market like markets are healthy for the market like that's they can't go up if it doesn't go that's they can't go up if it doesn't go that's they can't go up if it doesn't go down and down and down and you know understanding the utility of you know understanding the utility of you know understanding the utility of this technology that we have in front of this technology that we have in front of this technology that we have in front of us is important you know especially as us is important you know especially as us is important you know especially as an artist it can never matter you know an artist it can never matter you know an artist it can never matter you know you have to stick to wanting to create you have to stick to wanting to create you have to stick to wanting to create things and communicate things and communicate things and communicate um you know through ART everybody wants um you know through ART everybody wants um you know through ART everybody wants their bags to grow but their bags to grow but their bags to grow but that's at the end of the day that's not that's at the end of the day that's not that's at the end of the day that's not the point you know we're not taking none the point you know we're not taking none the point you know we're not taking none of that with us you know there's some of that with us you know there's some of that with us you know there's some people who are just about out the money people who are just about out the money people who are just about out the money and about you know just that kind of and about you know just that kind of and about you know just that kind of like I don't know Cloud all this other like I don't know Cloud all this other like I don't know Cloud all this other stuff but for a lot of us in the space stuff but for a lot of us in the space stuff but for a lot of us in the space it is about Community it is about art it it is about Community it is about art it it is about Community it is about art it is about you know truth and beauty and is about you know truth and beauty and is about you know truth and beauty and love finally prevailing so yeah it sucks love finally prevailing so yeah it sucks love finally prevailing so yeah it sucks that we're in the bear Market but we're that we're in the bear Market but we're that we're in the bear Market but we're in this together we're the ones who in this together we're the ones who in this together we're the ones who choose to come in day in and day out and choose to come in day in and day out and choose to come in day in and day out and support this space and support artists support this space and support artists support this space and support artists today's been a dream come true I've today's been a dream come true I've today's been a dream come true I've dreamed of just coming here taking a dreamed of just coming here taking a dreamed of just coming here taking a picture of wow and it just reminds me picture of wow and it just reminds me picture of wow and it just reminds me that anything is possible ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/6194057/harlem-nft-artists-hip-hop-jazz/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/6194057/harlem-nft-artists-hip-hop-jazz/"},"headline":"'It Started From Nothing.' 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