Short
- Gary Vaynerchuk held his first Veecon NFT conference in Minneapolis last weekend.
- The event included panels, celebrity interviews and concerts.
for all doom and gloom around NFT And the crypto space lately, you wouldn’t know it from inside Veecon last weekend. Entrepreneur, author and investor Gary Vaynerchuk’s inaugural NFT conference felt like a cross between “summer camp”—as he described it decrypt—and a music festival.
Inside the sprawling US Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, home of the NFL’s Minnesota Vikings, ViCon surrounds the main stage with food trucks, Adirondack chairs, giant Jenga—even a Ferris wheel. Within that chill setting, Veecon provided three days of panels and interviews featuring nightly music festivals, as well as massive celebrities and crypto creators.
In other words, it was not a loaded crypto convention. There was little talk of market conditions or regulations, and only a few suits were in sight. Instead Veecon focused on culture and community, and how NFT and web3 Technology could shake up stagnant industries, connect artists directly to fans, and in Pharrell Williams’ view, help change the world for the better,
That vibe matches the focus of Vaynerchuk’s NXT collection, we friends, around which the convention was built. Vaynerchuk Told decrypt That he considered throwing a “super-conference” almost a decade ago, but the timing was never right. With NFT, he saw an opportunity to provide his ardent fan base with access and opportunities.
Viacon was initially planned to be held on a cruise ship, he said, which may help explain the fickle getaway vibe that remained intact. When that plan wasn’t possible, partly because of COVID, Vaynerchuk decided on the stadium instead. “It’s probably more,” he said. decrypt Veecon opened its doors a day ago.
To some extent, this was overkill. The stadium floor was Ground Zero for thousands of attendees, including the main stage, food trucks and attractions. However, it was difficult to find the other stages scattered elsewhere in the stadium, with the climb up the stadium stairs back to the gathering was a killer. And total attendance was a fraction of the venue’s 73,000-person capacity.
While there were functional quirks in the stadium’s layout, the spacious setting itself gave the convention additional impact and played into the impression that it was not a commercial event. The welcome party was held straight outside, featuring music from DJ Skee and letting attendees paint with it CRYPTO ARTIST FEWOCIOUSset the tone that lasted through the weekend.
VeeCon also didn’t feel like it was designed specifically to maximize profit. It was created for holders of VeeFriends NFTs – who had already bought into the project – all of whom were given NFT tickets to the event. Attendees were greeted each morning with a free hot breakfast and ample beverages, a refreshing surprise for any event that takes place inside a football stadium.
Each day’s programming provided a mix of Vaynerchuk’s insightful inspiration for his brand and interviews with celebs such as Williams, spike leeMila Kunis, Eva Longoria, Logan Paul, and snoop doggAs well as discussions between crypto-native creators and educational fare about topics such as smart contracts and community building.
By the night, well-known musicians such as Wycliffe Jean and Miguel accompanied the Salem Iles-performer entertained the crowd around the stadium. Behind the Recent Meme Sensation“Crypto Boy.”
Holding a long-planned NFT conference during a market downturn might seem like an unfortunate timing, but the industry situation didn’t seem to have affected the event. The creators were delighted to meet contemporaries and connect with fans, and many of the attendees appeared thrilled to have Vaynerchuk around.
He spent hours at the reception party and during the weekend, taking selfies and hugging fans. Between VeeCon, VeeFriends, and Vaynerchuk, it was undoubtedly the Gary Vee show—but unpleasantly it wasn’t. He gave a keynote speech and conducted some interviews, but the focus was more on the NFT culture and its many creators.
“Energy is good. I think it’s informative to a lot of people,” noted NFT photographer Isaac “Drift” Wright Told decrypt, “It’s nice to see such a collective gathering of so many wonderful people. It’s always nice to be able to come together and talk about what’s going on, especially during the market that we have right now. It’s good to be one.”
adelina arzoo materdirector of communications NFT Project Women’s WorldGiven the state of the market, Veecon was concerned about its vibe, but said during the event that “everyone is happy.”
“We all feel like we are part of the same community,” she said.
Ultimately, Gary V’s first “Super-Conference” struck the right balance between community, education, and entertainment, and felt like a real benefit to VFriends holders. It achieved the stated goal of bringing together Gary’s own community of fans and collectors.
But it didn’t feel limited by VeeFriends or Gary’s connections, and it turned out to be a massive appreciation of the NFT scene — a bridge from Discord servers and Twitter to the real world. Who knows where the NFT industry will be a year from now, but I look forward to seeing how Veecon celebrates and adds to it in 2023.
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