Timbaland Just Unveiled His NFT Alter Ego “Congo”

Once you own an NFT, what can you do with it, exactly? If your NFT is under a CC0 license, the answer is pretty much whatever you want. For members of the Bored Ape Yacht Club, it’s a similar story. Owners of Bored Apes are very much free to commercialize whatever apes they currently have in their possession, turning them into brand new IP.

That’s exactly what Grammy award-winning producer and recording artist Timbaland has done with his Bored Ape. When Timbaland first acquired the Ape, it was simply known as Bored Ape #590. Today the Ape goes by Congo, and he’s got beef with the music legend.

Blockchain beef

Although Timbaland is far from the only person in the music industry who’s embraced NFTs, he may be the first to bring his Bored Ape to life to the extent that he has. So how exactly has he been ‘beefing’ with Congo?

Speaking on behalf of Congo in an interview with nft now, Timbaland explained that Congo said he’d show him “how to do it for 2022 and on” — perhaps insinuating that the methods of the old guards of music might not work moving forward.

Of course, Congo has a leg up on Timbaland in terms of longevity. “The difference is we don’t die. We stay in the metaverse, it’s a different world. […] You had your time, I’ll show you the new wave,” Congo reportedly said, according to Timbaland.

What they’re cooking up

Despite the harsh words, the two are collaborating on a series of new music with accompanying videos that are set to be released under Congo’s name. The first video, “Has A Meaning,” will be produced and directed by Timbaland’s protégé, Zayd Portillo. Timbaland reportedly plays two lead CGI roles in the video, all captured with Unreal engine.

Everyone involved in the project hopes this will be a watershed moment not just in NFTs, but in pop culture as well. “Creativity means starting. Just going forward. This video wouldn’t exist if we believed in limitations,” said Timbaland in the press release.

Congo’s music debut is set to drop on glass.xyz on June 30, with MP3s of the track available to viewers of the music video via an AirDrop. The NFT itself is set to go live later that day, with a 100-edition mint scheduled at 5:30 p.m. EDT