Sterling Proffer

We are socialized to see what is wrong, missing, off, to tear down the ideas of others and uplift our own. To a certain degree, our entire future may depend on learning to listen, listen without assumptions or defenses.

As I struggled with these thoughts early on, I wanted to explore what it would mean for brands and subcultures to merge more fully, to offer a much deeper and richer meaning. This set me on a quest to learn about cults. I read about organizations which were abusive and manipulative, but which still managed to create meaningful practices that... See more

7. Create a private community or fan club: For musicians, this might mean something like a fan club where the NFT acts as a membership pass into the club. With that membership comes all kinds of perks: meet-and-greets, early or exclusive access to merch and tickets, unreleased music, artist Q&As, etc.

In the 2010s, supply chain innovation opened up lifestyle brands. In the 2020s, financial mechanism innovation is opening up the space for incentivized ideologies, networked publics, and co-owned faiths. Liquid cryptocurrency tokens empower speculative cultural projects with monetary policies that create FOMO (e.g. Ethereum, FWB); NFTs enable... See more

Some users have already burned out, which raises the question of how many people with a coveted pro deal will find Substack’s grind unsustainable once they exhaust their advances. At the same time, many other writers simply won’t be able to make a living on Substack no matter how hard they try. But nevertheless, Substack’s growing cast of... See more

If tiktok makes the music world look and act more banal, it also, in some cases, makes it sound that way too. One fad is songs that take kindergarten-friendly gimmicks—a countdown, a sound effect—and add adult profanity, making for a cocktail of relatability.