Ed Balloon’s Mission to Convey Black Hair Tradition to the Blockchain

Don’t put Ed Balloon in a field.

The multidisciplinary artist has by no means lent himself properly to labels, exploring his quirky inventive imaginative and prescient by means of the lenses of music, movie, and stop-motion animation with tasks like Run Ed. Now it’s time so as to add generative artwork to the record.

His new venture, Beauty Supply Is Out of Du-Rags, launched this week on the newly-launched Prohibition platform, explores the advanced cultural legacy of Black hairstyles by means of algorithmic code. Billed as “the primary on-chain generative artwork venture that includes braids and locs,” the gathering represents a deeply private and cathartic second of expression based mostly on Balloon’s personal experiences.

“The du-rag is a manner of hiding, however you don’t have it, so you must let the world see and settle for you for who you might be,” he explains. “That’s the assertion that I’m making.”

In a conversational nft now podcast interview, Ed Balloon dives into his imaginative and prescient for the venture, the state of music NFTs, and the significance of uplifting artists of coloration.

Matt Medved: You’re a multidisciplinary creator who thinks when it comes to shifting photographs, artwork, and music. How did NFTs change the inventive canvas for you?

Ed Balloon: It gave me a lot extra flexibility. I feel exterior of Web3 as artists you’re like: okay, do a video, do a tune, then cowl artwork— it’s very linear. After I got here into Web3, it was like, no. It allowed me to see it as a spot the place I can create, be sincere, and disrupt. I by no means actually checked out making stuff like that when it got here to music till I got here to this house. Having conversations and simply seeing different individuals create helped me visually to see “perhaps I might wanna faucet into that.”

I all the time wished to make it possible for within the Web3 house, individuals knew that I used to be a musician and performer. Individuals didn’t actually know. They knew concerning the puppet, and so they knew concerning the visible cease movement factor, however they didn’t know that I additionally was a musician, although I might say, “Hey, I’m a musician, however I additionally do that, proper?” So I felt like I needed to do one thing.

To finish “Fuck Round And Discover Out” day … I made a decision to drop my genesis on superare. it’s a music nft that pays homage to black hair. This piece additionally was impressed by the legend @yatreda who was one of many first artist within the house who superbly introduced gentle to African hair con pic.twitter.com/4llag7Xp0X

— Ed Balloon.eth (@Ed_Balloon) January 3, 2023

As a musician your self, what’s your tackle the state of Web3 music? What do you suppose it’ll take to convey this ecosystem to the subsequent degree?

It’s bizarre as a result of I really feel prefer it’s proper there and it’s all the time dismissed. IRL live shows, ticketing — straightforward. However there may be this factor about ensuring that people perceive what’s taking place within the tradition. For me, I got here into music with the thought of a bunch of us disrupting what we knew, what we noticed, what we thought we knew, the patterns, and stuff like that.

Coming into Web3, I’m seeing the difficulties of simply individuals not likely understanding music as an entity and having to show that. It’s one thing the place I’m like, “How do I discover methods to have conversations and simply be such as you like music? Dope. You want visible artwork? Cool. Possibly we have to mix it too generally.”

Possibly that’s a approach to have those that are right here perceive getting a collectible, but additionally see it as one thing like effective artwork as properly. Music hasn’t even been checked out, to me, to my information, as one thing that’s effective artwork. So I really feel like even being in Web3 permits us the flexibleness to have the ability to not solely be this one factor.

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115- certainly one of my favourite outputs up to now pic.twitter.com/16KZPbdCWm

— Ed Balloon.eth (@Ed_Balloon) July 21, 2023

Inform us the imaginative and prescient behind your latest venture on Prohibition.

It’s going to be one of many first tasks that’s really going to show field braids and locs on the chain.

I had finished a drop on SuperRare referred to as, Trap Balls on a Loc Tree. It was a music piece and I used to be utilizing my locs, and I manipulated it in a manner the place it was like a tree department and I had these balls on it, and it was actually cool. I liked it. I had a couple of individuals asking me questions relating to that. It was in a manner the place there was a disconnect there. That form of triggered me. However I didn’t actually wish to discuss it.

I’m afraid to speak about it as a result of I’m unsure the way it’s gonna be checked out. As a Black artist, it’s all the time a really troublesome effective line between what you possibly can discuss and what you possibly can’t. I used to be afraid, and I wasn’t too positive why. However I did know from these conversations, I discovered myself form of triggered.

It brings me again to a whole lot of occasions rising up individuals stated “Hey, you have to shave your hair, or you possibly can’t have your locs, otherwise you’re not going to get that job, otherwise you’re not going to have the ability to do that, you’re not going to have the ability to try this.” What I discovered so odd was that listening to these items introduced me again to that place from these conversations on this ecosystem. We now have PFPs of animals sporting durags and I’m like, “Oh did we not know that durags are literally right here for hair safety?” There’s a disconnect there.

So this venture, I used to be like, “How do I discuss this now?’ I stated, “We’re going to code field braids and locs and we’re gonna put these dangerous boys on the blockchain.” My aim is to make it possible for we’re showcasing the sweetness relating to our hair, the artwork that goes by means of it, the method, and the time. Generally once we get our hair finished, it hurts. Individuals don’t perceive that. I wanna showcase the colours, but additionally how you’re feeling dope and contemporary when it’s finished. It’s these lovely issues that I used to be making an attempt to convey to life by means of this venture. That is artwork to us as properly. We love the designs that we make with them. We love how they sway within the wind. That is us and settle for us for us.

Oh my goodness!! the ED RUN COLLECTION IS TAKING OFF!! Oh my gosh ! Welcome new members to the fam!!! FYI – 50 % of secondary gross sales go to purchasing artwork type underrepresented artists within the house !

— Ed Balloon.eth (@Ed_Balloon) July 29, 2022

What’s the mission of The Ed Balloon Generational Wealth Fund?

I really need to have the ability to be able the place I should buy artwork from artists of coloration, particularly Black artists on this house, as a result of sadly, it’s nonetheless very troublesome for artists of coloration to promote their artwork. So I [decided] I have to discover a manner the place I can have this fund that goes to help that.

I felt like this was a manner additionally to be an instance for different tasks that wish to incorporate this as a result of I wasn’t seeing that. It’s one thing that I nonetheless champion and attempt to do as a lot as I can with it. I additionally nonetheless attempt to give visibility to the artists that we do accumulate as a lot as I can with my platform.

What’s your spicy take on the NFT house?

Possibly it’s not that spicy, however I nonetheless suppose a whole lot of platforms don’t know easy methods to transfer on this house presently. They’re doing issues which have already been finished, assuming that it’s going to assist them. However, that solely traps them, as a result of the house is all the time altering. Should you’re not capable of have your personal imaginative and prescient, then you definately’re not gonna be capable to transfer with this house. My aim is to assist however I really feel like a whole lot of occasions they’re not making an attempt to go to artists, which is bizarre as a result of we’re the voices of reasoning and we’ve got a whole lot of the imaginative and prescient.

This interview transcript has been edited for concision and readability.

For the total and uncut interview, hearken to our podcast episode with Ed Balloon.