Madonna NFT Collection Courts Controversy

No stranger to controversy, Madonna, who's been turning heads for more than 40 years on matters of entertainment, business, and sexuality, is at it again. In partnership with the artist Mike Winkelmann of the Beeple NFT fame, she's lately released a series of NFTs.

Madonna embraces blockchain

Pop superstar Madonna's entry into the world of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) last March 2022 caught many fans by surprise. She forked out 180 ETH, worth a whopping $560,000 at that time, for a tattooed NFT ape from the Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) digital art collection.

Later, in May 2022, the musician released the first Madonna NFT series titled the “Mother of Creation". The series comprises three digitally rendered videos showcasing a nude woman giving birth to fauna, flora, and technology.

The digital artwork resulted from a year-long partnership between her and Mike Winkelmann, also known as Beeple. Winkelmann made the headlines in 2021 with his Everydays: the First 5000 Days, which fetched $69.9 million at Christie's and set the NFT space on fire.

What is the Madonna NFT collection?

The "Mother of Creation" is an exclusive collection containing only three single-edition NFTs. The digital artist and pop/sex symbol is using the videos, showcasing three different motherhood-inspired aspects of life to celebrate motherhood. The Madonna NFT videos give audiences a full-frontal view of the pop star's avatar lying in a hospital bed, forest floor, and rusted vehicle, giving birth. Each of the NFTs is paired with her poetry or that by Rumi, a mystic poet.

The NFTs are named:

1. Mother of Nature: The first Madonna NFT, depicting her lying on a laboratory bed delivering a tree that blooms as soon as it comes out of her body, focuses on plant life.

2. Mother of Evolution: The second NFT depicts her naked in a run-down city while sitting in some modified vehicle. In the video, her legs are open, and butterflies emerge from her body – the NFT focuses on animal life.

3. Mother of Technology: The third NFT showing Madonna stark naked and lying in the middle of a forest shows a series of bionic centipedes moving up and down after protruding from her vagina, focusing on technological advancement.

A provocative NFT collection with a cause

To the casual observer, the Madonna NFT collection is peculiar but mostly seen as provocative. However, for those in the know, both the theme and execution of the videos are consistent with the character and style of Madonna and Beeple. The amorousness depicted has characterized Madonna’s decades-long musical and artistic career, while the weird renderings speak loudly of Beeple’s typical artwork.

Asked about the provoking nature of her NFT project, Madonna told New York Times that the theme was deliberate and wasn't simply "provocative just for the sake of provocation". According to the pop diva, the centipedes and butterflies she gives birth to in the videos symbolize hope and technology.

Conclusion

Despite the backlash and initial criticism from the community following the launch of the Madonna NFT collection, the Mother of Creation NFT series fetched more than $600,000. While it may be a far cry from Beeple's $69.9 million, Madonna intimated that proceeds from her NFTs would benefit three non-profit organizations working for women and children. They are the Ukraine-based Voices of Children Foundation, the Congo-based City of Joy Foundation, and Black Mama's Bail Out.

Beyond being a source of entertainment, Madonna’s NFTs indicate that celebrities and charities can, through the sale and auctioning of NFTs, secure funds for organizations and movements supporting significant causes.