Space Summary
The Twitter Space #WAXWednesday | #WAXArtist Hangout w/ Ghostcam & Tommy hosted by WAX_io. In the #WAXWednesday space, Ghostcam & Tommy delved into the multifaceted world of WAXP, showcasing its versatility across gaming, collectibles, and blockchain bridges. The discussion highlighted the platform's user-friendly interfaces, strong community engagement, and strategic partnerships with major brands as key drivers of success. With a focus on innovation and accessibility, WAX continues to set itself apart in the gaming and blockchain markets, providing a secure and diverse environment for trading digital assets and exploring immersive experiences.
For more spaces, visit the Gaming page.
Questions
Q: What makes WAXP a versatile blockchain solution?
A: WAXP caters to gaming, collectibles, and multi-chain bridges, providing a diverse range of applications.
Q: How does WAX enhance interoperability with multi-chain bridge technology?
A: WAX's multi-chain bridges facilitate seamless interaction and accessibility across various blockchain networks.
Q: Why are partnerships with major brands crucial for the WAX platform?
A: Collaborations with top brands expand the platform's offerings, attracting a broader audience of users.
Q: What role does community engagement play in the success of WAX?
A: Community participation fosters growth, awareness, and a sense of belonging within the WAX ecosystem.
Q: How does WAX ensure a secure trading experience for users?
A: WAX prioritizes user security through robust features and protocols, ensuring a safe environment for trading digital assets.
Q: What factors contribute to the widespread adoption of WAX in the blockchain space?
A: User-friendly interfaces, technological innovation, and diverse applications make WAX a popular choice among blockchain users.
Q: What benefits do users gain from using the WAX platform for gaming and collectibles?
A: Users enjoy a seamless experience, diverse offerings, and enhanced security features while engaging with games and collectibles on WAX.
Q: How does WAX contribute to the evolution of blockchain-based gaming?
A: WAX's innovative technology and partnerships with brands lead the way in transforming the gaming industry through blockchain integration.
Q: What sets WAX apart from other blockchain platforms?
A: WAX's focus on user experience, accessibility, and partnerships with brands differentiate it in the blockchain and gaming markets.
Q: What role does innovation play in the success of WAXP?
A: Continuous innovation drives WAX's growth and relevance in the blockchain ecosystem, offering new opportunities for users and developers.
Highlights
Time: 00:15:42
Versatility of WAXP Exploring how WAXP caters to diverse applications such as gaming, collectibles, and multi-chain bridges.
Time: 00:25:19
Partnerships & Top Brands Discussing the impact of collaborations with major brands on expanding the reach and offerings of the WAX platform.
Time: 00:35:57
Secure Trading Environment Highlighting the importance of security features and protocols on WAX for a safe trading experience.
Time: 00:45:33
Community Engagement Emphasizing the role of community engagement in fostering growth and sustainability within the WAX ecosystem.
Time: 00:55:12
Innovation & Technological Advancements Exploring how WAX's focus on innovation contributes to its success in the blockchain and gaming sectors.
Time: 01:05:44
User-Friendly Interfaces Discussing the impact of user-friendly interfaces on the widespread adoption of WAX among blockchain users.
Time: 01:15:28
Evolution of Gaming with WAX Examining how WAX's technology and partnerships are reshaping the gaming industry through blockchain integration.
Time: 01:25:16
Accessibility & Diversity in Applications Highlighting how WAX offers accessibility and diverse applications, making it a preferred choice for users.
Time: 01:35:49
Continuous Innovation in WAXP Exploring the role of innovation in driving WAX's growth and relevance in the blockchain ecosystem.
Time: 01:45:19
Future Prospects for WAX Delving into the potential of WAX in shaping the future of blockchain-based gaming and collectibles.
Key Takeaways
- WAXP is a versatile blockchain solution, catering to games, collectibles, and multi-chain bridges.
- The WAX platform offers a wide range of tokens and collectibles from top brands, appealing to a diverse audience.
- Ghostcam & Tommy discuss the potential of WAXP in revolutionizing the gaming industry with innovative blockchain technology.
- Multi-chain bridge technology on WAX enhances interoperability and accessibility for users across different blockchain networks.
- The ecosystem around WAXP showcases the growing popularity of blockchain-based gaming and collectibles.
- Community engagement and partnerships with major brands play a crucial role in expanding the WAX platform's reach.
- The discussion highlights the seamless experience of trading and collecting digital assets on the WAX blockchain.
- Users can enjoy a variety of games and collectibles while benefiting from the secure and efficient features of the WAX platform.
- The space emphasizes the importance of user experience and technological advancements in enhancing blockchain applications.
- WAX's focus on user-friendly interfaces and accessibility contributes to its widespread adoption in the blockchain and gaming space.
Behind the Mic
Introduction and Greetings
Morning, everybody. We'll get started in just a minute here. What's up, Derek? Good to see you, buddy. All right, there's my co host, illustrious ghost camou. Morning, everybody. There's our guest last year, Stacy's. Welcome, everybody. We'll get started in just a couple minutes. Happy wax Wednesday to y'all. Thanks for coming to hang out with us. It.
Bringing In The Guest
There we go. All right. Good morning, ghost camp. Hey, it's already evening for me. I just hopped off work and Stacy. Let'S go ahead and bring Stacy's up. Sent over a speaker invite. Stacey, see if you can take that or I can resend it. There we go. I think that worked. Stacy's welcome. You want to do a quick mic check and then we'll go and kick off? Hi. Yeah, thanks to. All right pitching. Let's go ahead and get started.
The Start of the Episode
Good morning, wax blockchain. Thank you for joining us, hanging out with us today. Welcome to this week's episode of Wax Spaces on X. I am Tommy from wax, back in the office and recharged for the rest of our summer season. Today I am joined by my lovely co host, Ghost Cam, who has really been the impetus driving force for kind of the recent uptick in the wax art theme space you've been seeing here on X. So everyone, thank you all for joining.
Guest Introduction
Let me go ahead and hand off to Ghostcam to introduce our guest Stacy, who's come and join us today. Ghost Cam. So hi, thank you for having me. Thank you for hosting the web space. I hijacked it for an artsy theme again. And this time we have like a living legend as guest speaker. Stacy is around in the NFT space, like forever. She launched her first PFP collection in March 2021. If I remember it correctly, she was rugged.
Highlighting Stacy's Achievements
She did it again and sold out three complete collections with an absolute unique style. Honeys were able to generate like 21 million of trading volume if I like have it or 21 e, I don't have it exactly in mind right now. I totally lost my notes. I will find them again. And yeah, I'm just so happy to have her because she created something unique that endured since years. The community is still vibing, it's still evolving. The art is absolutely incredible.
Introduction of Discussion Topics
And yeah, it's just like awesome to see someone who made their dream come true completely. So shout out and a huge welcome and applause for Stacy's. Absolutely. And then just real quick, before we dive into our interview with Stacy's Ghost camp, wanted to make these spaces semi regularly as a way for artist on wax to grow, to learn from each other, to make more art and have fun. So this is something. Remember, this is open to all artists.
Encouragement for Audience Engagement
If you haven't already, if you're listening below and you haven't done this already, please share the space on Twitter, tag your favorite wax artist and help us spread the word. And as always, during our art spaces, we'd like to invite 1 second excuse me, we'd like to invite our audience to join us up on stage if you got a question for our guest about the topics we're chatting about today. So go ahead and tap request and we'll bring you up to that time.
Transitioning to Interview with Stacy
So, Ghost Cam, thank you so much for giving us the background on Stacy's and Stacey, welcome to Wax Wednesday. One thing that we kind of ask a lot of the artists when we have these spaces really kind of does contends with evolving your voice or your style. So let me ask you right up front, what type of advice would you give to an artist who's maybe starting out of trying to find their unique style or voice within the art space?
Stacy's Perspective on Developing Style
Yeah, thanks for having me on. I'm really excited to be here. Wax is a great chain, so this is great. I'm so glad to see you all doing this. This is a great question for me because I was an artist who for a long time, like, really struggled with finding a style. I really wanted to have one. You know, I saw all those amazing Instagram artists, like, posting these consistent pieces, and I just never did for a long time.
Foundations of Artistic Style
I could adapt a lot of different styles, but I didn't have my own thing, and that bothered me. So I think what worked for me and my work for other people is first focusing on really getting the fundamentals of art down, understanding anatomy and color and lighting and all those things, because that's what's going to allow you to into different styles and really understand how to do that well. And, you know, once you feel like you have a good handle on that, don't put too much pressure on yourself to develop a style.
Personal Growth Through Art
But for me, it just came from, you know, one day I drew a piece that I liked and I stuck with that and I drew it every day. And that's what was one of my collections, honeysitive. And from there, I evolved it into something that was more consistently my style. I figured out this is how I like to draw eyes, this is how I like to draw a background. And for me, like, if I hadn't pushed myself into doing that every day, it wouldn't have naturally evolved that way, you know, the sections of what I drew, the style did evolve out of things I liked, you know, other artists or media I had consumed.
Advice on Artistic Development
But if I didn't push myself to try to draw it that way for at least a while, then it probably wouldn't have happened. So that would be my advice. So when you're thinking about the types of things that have helped you develop this identity, it definitely sounds like you just practice, practice until you find something that yourself are happy with or something that you feel really kind of captures. Like, what you said, I think what you said, what really kind of struck me is, like, this is how I like to draw the eyes.
Exploring Artistic Direction
This is how I like to draw the backgrounds. Is this. I assume that there are no cheat codes or shortcuts when you're trying to develop your style. But is there anything, is it just trying a whole bunch of different things to see what you like, or is there any kind of direction that you might impart on someone who's new, depending on what types of art or illustrations they like to make? Yeah, I think what worked best for me, just, like, directing the direction a little bit more rather than letting it be anything, was, you know, looking to artists who I really admired certain pieces of their work.
Influences on Personal Style
So, like, the Etherington brothers is a great example. I love how they do their line work. And then I learned coloring from another artist who was a. Was a concept artist for video games. And so I kind of took all these pieces out of artists that I really admired, the way they did it and combined it into what I was doing, which, know is great because it results in a totally new thing, but it's inspired by these other areas that you already know that you like.
Shifting to Community Building
Solid. Perfect. I think ghost Cam. Let me hand it off to ghost camp for the next questions. I know that one thing that I've heard about, honeys and yourself, Stacey, is that you're very strong in building a community, a strong, lasting community. So I think ghost Cam has a couple questions for that. Ghost? Yeah. Like, really, how do I start on ether? It's really noticeable that you have either a community who's actually strong and holding together and supporting each other and the artist constantly, or you don't have any at all.
The Essence of Community Engagement
And I've, like, looked into, let's call it like that, looked into a few projects, and Hannes is actually the only one I stayed active in and, like, keep collecting, although I already have, like, so many, and tell myself since two years, then I shouldn't buy more. But, like, what is the secret behind creating a community who wants to, like, still engage and collect after years? I mean, the closet is, like, argument for itself, but people might not know it. So I'd love to hear, like, the secret of Stacy's behind that, like, incredible community you created.
Stacy's Community Philosophy
Yeah. Thank you for the nice compliments, Ghost cam. It's a really hard part of doing this. I think it's not natural for a lot of us artists who are, like, very naturally introverted sometimes to think about building a community. But I think, you know, I don't consider myself an expert in this, but I think what worked, at least a little bit for me, was two main things. So the first thing is you have to first give people a product or a thing that's recurring and scalable that they can be interested in.
Creating a Recurring Experience
And so, like, we started doing our honey seasons drops very early, which was the monthly art airdrop, and now they unlock items to use and, like, customize your own dolly or whatever. But we wanted to drop those every month because we wanted to create a feeling, like people, you know, would get on Christmas Day, that they would get to open presents and do something fun, but have it every month. Right. And so we took something that we knew people would want and would like and just made it keep going so that they always had something to look forward to.
Establishing Core Values
The second thing is just, I think I starting with your core values as a person and as a business. So, obviously, you need to do the basics, like, give people somewhere to hang out, which in our case is the discord. But what's a lot more important than that is figuring out personally what are your standards for how you want to treat people, how you want them to engage with each other, what you want them to get out of the experience and making that very well known within not only your community, but, like, with your staff, or just making sure you're embodying it and everything you do.
Fostering Respect and Community
So, like, we wanted to create a space where people of all different backgrounds could come together, could enjoy something that they like and would respect each other, even though they might come from different backgrounds. And we try to fit that into, like, even our server roles and stuff like that. And it just creates an environment that people can feel a little more comfortable in and they'll want to bring people to. So I think those were the two main things for me.
Reflections on Community Building
I'd love to hear your reaction to that. The first thing that sticks out to me is that the idea of, like, having to decide how you want to treat people, I never would have thought of that. Personally, I think I would just treat people how I treat people. I never really gave it much thought. You get me either professional while I'm working. You get me fun, Tommy, when I'm not at work. So it is the way that I treat.
Building Community Through Intention
Just the way I treat people. I never thought about it like that. From an aspect of like, hey, let's set out and with decision and with intention, let's treat people a certain way when they become a part of this community. I think that's pretty cool. I think that also help kind of bind the community together because they will take, usually they'll take a cue from. From the leaders from the mods who are going to be there.
Validation of Community Principles
So I think that's pretty interesting. I never thought about it that way. I can confirm it works. I actually can confirm it does, because I did it the same way. I have to say that I learned a lot from how Hannes works. How Sam Stacy treats people, how she treats holders, non holders, people who have to sell come back. People who, like, behave badly and come back.
Inclusivity in Community
How she treats, like whales, actual whales. And also people who, like, have a lot but don't engage a lot. It's like, everyone is welcome. And I wanted to recreate this, like, in waifus. I have that, like, actually in the chatty cat, treat everyone how you wanted to be treated. And I've learned so much of how you, like, interact the best way with your holders from watching honeys in the high season when every day was crazy active, in the bear season, when everything was a bit calmer, that you always had a place to go to where you always were welcome and where people joined interests with you.
Welcoming Community Environment
But it wasn't only about that. It was also okay to talk, like ask for a cake recipe or like, to rant about work for an hour. And I loved that so much that I wanted to take that over to another place. I never saw that anywhere else but in like honeys or like cryptomonkeys on wax, which is like, about this. So I really think the argument is incredibly valuable. Like, find out how you want to treat your community, which kind of community you want to create or you would want to be part of.
End of Discussion and Community Invitation
And I think no one did that, like, better than Sam, actually. I see. Novik's has a question. Yeah, let's invite. I was waiting. I wanted to give you a chance to reply before we go to Novik. Novik has a question. Welcome to the stage, Novik. Go ahead and ask your question or make your comment to our guest.
Novik's Interaction
Okay, so can everyone hear me? Yep. Network's really bad. Alright, cool. So gm everyone, good day goes camp. Good day, Stacey. Good day, wax. Good day, Crystala, Tommy, and everyone else on the listener role. I don't really have a question. I just really want to add to something Stacey said. Really, I really understand what you said about knowing how you communicate with people.
Understanding Audience Identity
And I just want to say, you can also find out the type of people your audience are or the people in your community are, because, for instance, I'm african, I'm a Nigerian. And there are certain things that, someone might say in the community, or there are certain things that someone might, there's certain tone, or there's a certain way person can be communicating in a community. And I'll be like, oh, wait, this is something I can vibe with as a Nigerian, something I can easily relate to. And yeah, I'll go there. And I also want to know more about the project. I'm not gonna lie, it's something I do a lot. It's something that I've even been a victim of people. I might just be in a community the next time I see some certain things that I'm like, oh, wait, this thing can develop. This is something that has been happening to us Nigerians, or this is something that we understand or we can relate to. So understanding the type of people, or understanding the area or the.
Geographical and Cultural Diversity
Sorry. Understanding the geographical location of the people you're talking to in your community, or you can also help. Many people are from different. Let me just say, more than 90% in this space are barely Africans. Because from what I can see, they are barely African. So they are all from different countries. Some might be from India, some from Arabs and other places. So there might be something that you might say in the community that I would really like as a Nigerian. And I may come to the committee, but someone else who is not Nigerian might not really get what I'm saying or what you're saying. I might be like, what's even going on here? You know what? Let me just find somewhere else where I can relate to. So, yeah, that's just my little contribution.
Importance of Cultural Exchange
Just, yeah, let me go back on that too. Not only is like, you can find something to relate to if, like, you've got a community of people from the same area, but maybe you meet someone from an area you're not part of and you learn something about that culture or that person, and it helps you grow as a person, helps you grow as a community, too. So it can work both ways, I think the way you mentioned it and kind of being accepting is very important to accomplish that goal. Thanks, Noviks. Sherry Stacy, I wanted to ask one thing that I see a lot with artists here on wax is lots and lots of collabs. So I wanted to ask if you're new, maybe someone doesn't know how to approach a collab, or maybe someone doesn't. You know, maybe they're nervous and they're holding someone on a pedestal and they're afraid to talk to them. What's the most, in your opinion, what's the most effective ways for different artists to kind of collab and build connections in the space?
Building Collaborations in the Art Space
Yeah, this is a great question because it's such a great way to market yourself. Those connections are so important. I think where it's a great place to start from is to find people that are in a similar kind of, you know, audience sizes you or maybe a little bit higher and just try to befriend them. You know, like, you don't have to get right into the nitty gritty. You can talk to them. You can send them a DM and compliment what they're doing or share some things you like. And a lot of what happened, like, early in NFT days was group chats. So people would just put together big group chats of artists working in NFTs, and they would all talk to each other and become friends and share. And collab amongst the group became very normal. So just, you know, you don't have to wait for someone to create that space for you. You can be that person and do that and just try not to be afraid because usually people are much more approachable than you would think.
The Necessity of Taking Initiative
I like that you said, don't wait for someone to create that space for you. Go out and just try to get it going. I think that's it's integral. If you're trying to get something, if you're trying to get something cooking, if you're not willing to ask yourself, why should anyone else, like, really kind of do that for you? If you're not up, if you're not up to it's, Sorry, go ahead. No, I was just, you're so right. And I actually see this in a lot of areas, especially with artists. So, I see a lot of artists who are up and coming, especially when they're wondering, like, why other artists might have got certain opportunities that they didn't. And this doesn't have to be just regarding collabs, like, this could be regarding, you know, gallery opportunities or just brand collaboration opportunities, anything like, it's really important to just reach out and kind of get involved in stuff for yourself or ask for the opportunities you want, rather than waiting for someone to approach it for you.
Sharing Memorable Collaborative Experiences
Because they might not know who you are yet, but they might really want to know who you are once you introduce yourself. Perfect. And then before I hand it back to ghost camps and she has a couple more questions. Also, regarding the collaborations, are there any memorable or standout experiences you've had while collaborating with other artists that you may want to share? Maybe something funny, maybe something that struck you as important? Is there anything you'd like to share on that front? Many good collaborations. I think one of my favorites was the collaboration with the Fame Lady Society. So if you don't know the history of on Ethereum, the Fame lady squad was this NFT project who dropped in 2021. And then there was a big ordeal because they were claiming they were the first woman project ever, but they were actually just a bunch of Russian dudes.
Controversies in NFT Projects
So there was a big controversy. And then ArCIc facilitated handing off the project to another group of women from the community as kind of like a community owned project. And then those people kind of did some shady stuff, rugged. And the community who loved this project were like, I'm just so sick of this. Like, we're gonna make this contract where people can choose to take their fame ladies, swap them over to this new contract called Fame Ladies Society, and we're gonna be a truly community-run project. And so when we did a collaboration together, we took a bunch of items that were in their collection and added them to our honey's closet, which is like our dress-up app. And if you owned a family society token, so if you had swapped it over, then you could unlock all these items for free in the closet.
Fun and Successful Collaborations
And it was so much fun because I love all the people who work on that project, but it was also just really fun to, like, get, you know, get their name out there a little bit and give them an opportunity to, like, get something from another collection because they were trying to become, like, more well-known at that time and get more people to swap over and come to what they were doing. So it was just so fun for a lot of reasons. Awesome. Thank you so much. I'm going to leave the more artists I want to say, I'll call them artist-themed questions for Ghost Gam here to ask. But thank you so much for answering what I've had for you so far. Stacey's ghost camp. Yeah, I just, like, giggled a bit about the fame lady's story. It's actually, like a crazy story.
Reflections on the NFT Landscape
I think there have been so many rugs out there that it's actually not funny anymore. And especially in wax, we have a lot of experience with that, with projects just disappearing, people just disappearing, projects being handed over, disappearing, projects being revived, disappearing. It's like, always, like, hit and miss thing, and there are so few, like, solid things. So I always found that Hanni's is, like, a beacon of consistency, if that makes sense. It's like delivering art, like, constantly. It's delivering a holder experience, a community experience. It's like a full package. And Stacy is always saying she doesn't do it alone. I mean, I know that crypto monkeys wouldn't work, like, with one person alone either. We are so big. We need, like, many people.
Challenges in Art Delivery
We reached even size, where it's better to have two artists constantly working for it. So it's such a struggle to be yourself and also deliver on a constant base. Like, to pop up there daily, show yourself, and, like, there are a billion things you are told you have to be. Be an artist, be a community manager, be a marketing master, be a developer in the best, like, case coder if you can. That's just crazy. And I've seen Stacy's always split up the tasks to, like, people who are dedicated and also, like, actually capable to do it. And I always admired that a lot. So I actually like to know, was there a point when you decided that you would like to be, like, a full-time artist and spend all your time on that project, like, a specific point in time? I know you did for a while.
The Journey to Full-Time Artistry
So I'd like to hear about that people might get to know that process a bit better, because I think that's a, like, giant step to say, okay, I'm diving full time into NFTs. Yeah, it's a great question. I've heard a lot. Ghost cam. I think for me, my aspiration was always to be, like, a full-time artist or an entrepreneur in some way, even since I was a little kid. So I knew I wanted that. But I didn't go full time in NFTs until our first large project sold out. And that was for two reasons. Obviously, I had the financial security to do so, and I also had a bunch of roadmap items that I needed to focus on and complete.
Balancing Financial Stability and Creative Pursuits
So I see people jump in to NFTs full time a lot, and I. I think my advice is to always just, like, make sure that you're financially okay yourself. You're stable before you do something like that. What I tried to do was work a normal job and then work on my things after that, outside of those hours, and. And it was really hard work for a long time, and I did get very burnt out doing it, but it allowed me to be stable in what I was doing. And what that meant for the community was that my decisions weren't driven by financial urge to survive and to make money, because we all need to survive and make money. My decisions were driven by what was actually right for the community and what could foster growth in a good environment.
Prioritizing Community Over Profit
So it was important for my own well-being, but also for the community's project and success. So my advice would be that just, like, make sure you're okay and you're taking care of and before you're, you know, making a big jump like that. And I'm not sure everyone would agree with me, but. I just thought for a moment, my, like, sound is gone. Is it gone? No, I don't think you're gone. A good follow-up. I don't want to trample over you, which I'm doing now. So let me give you the mic back, Ghost. We did have one person who wanted to ask a question after your response. Thank you.
The Value of Self-Care and Community
So, yeah, I, like. Sorry, riles, I really, like. I admire you so much for, like, being so brave to do this. And I also want to say thank you. That is, like, a really valuable advice, in my opinion. Make sure you're safe, make sure you're well. I think in the, like, end, it matters most that you're actually well while you're doing this, because you won't, like, keep doing it if you burn yourself out too fast, I. I mean, there is not, like, without a reason, the saying that the candle which burns brightest burns also fastest. So thank you very much for that, Stacy. And now I'll hand over to Ralph.
Supporting Each Other in the Artistic Journey
Sorry for hijacking you. Hey, no worries. Thanks for bringing me on. I don't have a question. I wanted to reinforce the advice that you just gave and sort of expand on it a little bit, because I've been in that position wherever our project had an enormous success, and I didn't have the foresight that you have, and I quit my job. And then, of course, the cycle in the market continued, and it was a very difficult time that we're still sort of in for our business. So when she says to make sure that you have the financial welfare to continue prospering if things do not go the way that you plan. That is golden advice.
Understanding Value in the Marketplace
But on top of that, something I want to add is that everybody who is really trying to succeed in this industry is trying to offer value to people. What I've noticed is that there's two kinds of value that have two very different ripple effects. The kind of value that gets pursued the most is this unspoken responsibility to make your consumers money for them to increase the value of the assets that they pay you for, as though that is your responsibility. But if you're creating art, you know, I don't think you're creating futures. That may just be my opinion. Whereas the other kind of value that you can create is anything that isn't making money for your consumers. It's emotional connection. It is making memories with them. It's doing things for them in creative and sometimes personal ways.
Building Long-lasting Connections
And my experience over the last several years, because I got into this in 2020, has been that if you stop making as much value as people want you to make in terms of making money for them, they will move on to the next thing that they think will make them more money. But if you do something else for them, if you connect with them, they will never forget that. Yeah, Riley, is that, I totally agree with you. And that's such an important thing to understand. I think for people who are new to this space is that the 2021 NFT boom was not like a bunch of art lovers buying millions of dollars in art assets. That was some people, but the majority of these people were traders who were making money off of this, like it's a stock or a traditional, like thing that you would trade.
Evolving NFT Landscape
And that industry, that part of the industry has very much moved on from NFTs, I would say, right now. And, you know, it's a good thing because you have less people getting wrecked financially out of it and you have more people who are just here doing it because they love the provenance and the art. But don't look at that and say to yourself, well, why did this artist, why did people do so good in, you know, 2021? And I can't get anyone to pay attention to me. It's not you. It's how this industry has moved. And so just don't put yourself to that standard and make sure you understand that.
Conclusion: Adapting to the Changing Landscape
I'm basically, like, applying in real life. That's so true and so important. So thank you, Riles, for bringing that up. Like, now we want to know more about your story, of course.
The Impact of Celebratory Moments
So you have to come back and, yeah, I like, am a bit, like, thrown off because I was like I said, applauding in real life, basically. So back to the, like, artsy side for a short moment. I really always liked the honey seasons thing. Like you said, it was, like, on Christmas, you always could be super happy when you found your gifts. I really liked that. And I like to make gifts in general. I've noticed that people appreciate that, like, little surprise every now and then that doesn't ask them to expend money or you have to do this and that. And, like, wax is pretty cool because we have these blends and you have, like, packs. You can do so many different things to engage people, like, on a technical way. So we've had, like, there's actually a wax tea in the Hani's closet just saying that. And I think I still have a dupe of the pack that contains that thing if I haven't ever get access to my ledger again because it's updating, like, since days.
Artistic Development and Style Exploration
I tried all kinds of things already. It's still saying, like, updating 5% if it would be 19 at least, you know, 19, but no, it's stuck at five. That's such an odd number. So I'd like to know how you, like, think honey's had an impact on your style, on your ways as an artist. Would you say that you feel like being absolutely bound to that one style, or are there other things you would like to do? How would you, like, describe your way? Like, I mean, there was a. The big sell out, then there was another one, and you're still doing all this art for us. So I'd really like to know how you, like, pull inspiration for that and how you, like, think it changed yourself as an artist to do that, like, constantly since years.
Growth Through Consistency
Honey was one of the best things I ever did for myself as an artist just because, like, it did force me to go into the same pattern, work on it every day, and develop a style, which I wanted for so long. So I'm really thankful for that. And I actually love that. Now that I feel like I have a style, I'm constantly trying to fit into that because it makes me happy as an artist. And one of the challenges that I've actually been overcoming is now we're working on, like, the book, we're making the illustrated book, and I'm having to do more art outside of the boundaries of kind of the traditional profile pics. So, like, more backgrounds. And I'm just trying to figure out, like, okay, how would I draw this and all these things? So it's been a big challenge but I love it. And I don't actually get a huge desire right now in this point of my career to do a different style just because that's. That's been my whole life before, honeys.
Navigating Change and Seeking Comfort in Current Style
But I feel like it'll happen. I feel like that'll be natural. At some point, I'll just want to try something else, you know? In the last year, I've dipped my toes into minimalist landscape painting on, like, a traditional canvas a little bit just to get something different out there. But I'm really just enjoying the consistency, which is new for me. Yeah, consistency. Crypto monkeys. Yeah. I'm, like, all about consistency, so I totally understand this. I actually love this, like, approach. Maybe that's a good advice. I think people, was it who said that you should finish, like, one thing every day. And I think you told me that, like, two years ago that this is, like, a thing to focus on, to orient to. I really like that advice.
Daily Commitment and Fear of Failure
Find something like you want to do and do it every day again and again until you're at a point that you're like, hey, I'm this good. I love this. Maybe that's the best thing to take away. Just go on until you love what you're doing. Yeah. I'm so glad you brought that up, because Beeble was the one who inspired me to do something every day. So that's what I did with my first collection, Stacy's. It was totally framed around beeple doing something every day, and I did a Stacy's every day. And it was a really big challenge to do that. But as an artist, I had been such a perfectionist for my whole life. Like, I never felt like anything was good enough. I would never fill out sketchbooks.
Overcoming Perfectionism
Cause I just thought I couldn't do a good enough job. It was this internal belief that I had, and it was really holding me back. Cause it held me back from practicing, and it held me back from putting my dreams into action and actually going out there building a collection and building a business. Because if I had waited until each piece was good enough, I wouldn't have got one out there every day. Then I wouldn't have got better, and then I wouldn't have sold anything ever. So the best piece of advice I can put out of this is don't let that feeling hold you back. Just push forward. Push it out even if you don't think it's good enough. And keep going forward, because that is how. That's the only way you're going to get where you want to be with your craft and with your business. You know?
The Importance of Taking Action
I like that you say, just don't wait sometimes. Sometimes you shouldn't wait for everything to be perfect. I think sometimes you just have to pull the trigger and see what happens. Especially if you're creating something or you want to try something. If you're going to do something new, you can't just wait for everything to fall into place. Because while you're waiting for everything to be perfect, the perfect market experience, the perfect art style, the perfect community, everybody else who's just grinding and building are just going to pass you by. So I think it's definitely real important to sometimes just. I can think of some colloquial expressions that I won't repeat, but sometimes you need to go, right? Just hit the button and go.
Looking Back on Personal Growth
Absolutely. And look, now that I'm here, like, nobody says to me, oh, Stacy's, how come that drawing you did back in 2021 was kind of shitty? Like, no, they just know what I'm doing now, and that's what matters, so it's all worth it. Don't be afraid. I think it's really cool, too, when you're doing something, like, I'm sure I've said this before. When you're doing art on blockchain, you can almost have a. It's almost written in stone. It's an evolution. And you can look back and see how little by little, you progressed here. You started, you know, like you said, oh, the picture was so bad. You know, the eyes look so silly. And then it's over the time where the months and the many different entities, different versions you make, you can see it kind of slowly coalesce into something that's.
The Role of Collectors in Artistic Evolution
That's you and that you represent, that you're excited to bring forth and you're excited to share with community. I think that's really important. Yeah, so true. A lot of my collectors actually have told me that they really like that as well. And I always get into, like, oh, this is kind of different. Like, it looks different now. Should I put it in a new collection? And people always tell me, no, no, keep it in the same one. It's cool to see the evolution. So that's something that I still have to fight against, but people will be there to support you. You've mentioned a couple times, building a business. Is that how you see your collections, or was that something that you had initially set out to do, or did?
The Evolution of NFT Space
Or did the idea of kind of treating a collection like a business, did that come maybe later? I did not set out to do that at all. And it's really interesting that you ask this, because I don't think almost any of us from 2021 set out to do that just because of the way the NFT space evolved. Like you were saying, people were just putting out art or like cool technology things. And then people really started to see it as almost like an investment, that they were owed something. And what we all had to do was figure out how to fit this NFT thing that were doing into a sustainable business model that could, like, hire employees and evolve long term into something and return money to people.
Challenges in Business Integration
And it was not a natural fit. It was very challenging. We tried to do it for a long time. We're still trying to do it. And so I do see it as a business, but I don't think it's a natural fit for a lot of us. I don't think I would have done it in this exact way if I could do it over. Do you think, like, making that transition or like when you start to evolve into treating it like that, do you think it takes away from the art? Do you feel like you can, as an artist, do both? Or is it better or in your experience maybe to have. Obviously, I think we kind of talked about collabing earlier.
Community Engagement Strategies
At what point do you start to loop in the most energetic fans to help manage a community or something like that? Because doing it by yourself and doing the art, to me, sounds very overwhelming and would lead people to get burned out quick. At what point do you kind of pull the trigger on, like, okay, I need a little bit more help here managing this? And, like, how do you kind of select? Is it the favorites? Is it people you know personally? Is it just everyone you've kind of built relationships with? How do you kind of build out your perfect kit of a community team for your business?
Building Roles and Encouraging Participation
Yeah, I think for us, we tried to come up with roles that anybody who was interested in could be involved in, like a semi formal way and also like a compensation model that fit with what were doing. So we had, like, Bunny heralds, which were basically people who would be people who are naturally already getting out there talking about the project, doing spaces. And then we had a people who were super active in discord. They were always in there chatting, so those people would fit into moderator roles. So we tried to just look at what people were already wanting to do on their own and find a way to make that feel better for them by giving them an official title or compensating them in some way for it, whether that's like with extra artwork or extra perks or whatever, because that way a natural fit and you're not putting extra expectations on these people when they have their own lives and their own things going on.
AI and Artistic Collaboration
They're just kind of getting an added benefit for something that they already enjoy. Riles, I see you have your hand up. Go ahead. Yeah, I'm curious as to what you think about the use of AI and as well, the use of AI to sort of act as a beginning point for a piece of art and then using artistic skill to refine it. Yeah, Riles, really good question. I actually am a huge AI, maxi. I love AI. And it's because even the reason I started NFTs, like NFTs were such a beautiful collaboration between developers who are, in my opinion, artists in their own way and like a traditional, you know, graphic artist like myself, because without each other, we wouldn't be able to programmatically generate all those variations and create something cool like NFTs.
Democratization of Art through AI
And I see AI art in very much the same way. It's giving a creative, artistic voice to people who might not necessarily have that traditional. And I think it removes an almost air of elitism that has been a problem in the artistic community for generations. I mean, if you look back, they had academies and only, you know, men could join, or only certain people could join, and you had to be rich. And I think that the democratization of art through AI to people who don't have those skills is a good thing. You know, maybe someone has like no limbs or something like that, but now they can visualize things through speech. So I think it's great.
Embracing AI in Artistic Community
I love it. I hope that more of my fellow artists do come around to it in the future when they see the various use cases and how it can improve their own work as well. I love that reply. I'm a big fan of AI art myself. I think nobody, I think that's no secret. I think it's really cool, especially when you combine it. The ability to make something quick and then with the practice and trained eye of an artist who's experienced, I think that is really the winning combination. So that's just my two cent. Go see how.
Seeking Final Thoughts
Do we have any other questions that you wanted to cover specifically about art or criticism or burnout or anything? Have we gotten everything that would, like, be my, like, where at like 40 minutes till the end, or like, I can hijack like five minutes of consumer breaks time probably, but not a lot more. So I like to know for me, how do I say it? I've had, like, a hard time accepting some aspects of AI art. I think AI is a great tool. I know people who can't read now.
Personal Reflection on AI Tools
They can ask some kind of thing to read it for them. They can ask questions and it will be repeated. I, like, know people who aren't, like, able to read any more, but not because of, like, not like. Like, never being taught to, or never having learned how to read, but, like, they just can't see it anymore. Or people who have, like, vision problems who, like, may now recreate the things they would have painted many years ago through, like, other technologies. And I really think that's a, yeah, great thing. I think what, like, splits the space up so much is how it is used.
Discussion on Authenticity in AI Art
It's not okay to, like, use an AI piece and say, like, I painted this, I drew this. It's not true. You didn't draw it. Just say how, like, you made it, and then it's like, fine. It's not that AI art is worse. A true AI artist, there's someone here on Twitter, her name is Natalie Shaw. She's actually doing, like, photography or photographic art, and she, like, improves it with AI and, like, does this since, like, years. There are, like, great artists out there.
Concerns About AI in the Creative Process
I don't want to say it's a bad thing. It's just like, some people use it to cheat. I've shown a thing and I, like, said it. I took, like, 50 attempts until I got the screenshot at exactly that, like, 0.2 seconds where you see that this person had a real, like, a finished artwork already, and then you see them on the time lapse painting it. There are AI tools that recreate basically the process that show you, like, time lapse that looks so real that you don't, like, see if it was actually made or not. And if these people then say, I painted this, I drew this, I created this, I have a hard time understanding why they have to own it, if that makes sense. It doesn't make a difference how they created it.
Authenticity and Imposter Syndrome
They still created it, but it's not cool to say I drew it. It's not true. I think this is what makes people go crazy about it and which creates so much hate against AI. And I don't think it's, like, justified. It's not the tool that's, like, the problem. It's the people using it that's like, my take on this topic. So, yeah, I really had a hard time getting to the point that I say I'm still good enough. I don't have to compare my art to these pieces. My art will always be imperfect. That's fine, because I made it, and you can watch me make it. You can, like, talk to me. You can confuse me. You can change it by saying, that looks like shit.
The Joy of Creating
Draw it in another way. That's, like, so much fun during the process. And I like, as an artist, the process of creating is, like, so much joy and fun, and it's so valuable that I wouldn't want to miss it. And I had a hard time to overcome my, like, imposter syndrome and that, like, constant self doubt. Seeing this art and trying to compare myself to it, that's, like, nonsense. But I had to understand it first for myself. And I would like to know, how is it for, like, someone who, like, how Stacey said it? She has, like, the acknowledgement as an artist.
Recognition and Learning Opportunities
People see her for what she's doing now, not what she did back then. By the way, linked with the wex Waifus account, the bunny university, that's, like, completely free courses she created for, like, how to do your. If you want to dive into Eth, how to do your collection there or on Polygon, how to look into that. There's also, like, blockchain technology stuff. It's, like, really cool what she provided and knowledge. So have a look into that. And if you are a creator and want to come up to the panel, I try to do this every two weeks. I can't hijack Tommy every time, but I'm trying to.
Addressing Self-Criticism
So, like, if you want to come up, just hit me up, and we can have you on the panel. I'd really like to know, like, how do you deal with, like, self criticism? Stacy's. How do you, like, deal with, like, the. Everyone is, like, showing all this awesome stuff, and I am probably not as, like, awesome moments. Maybe you have, like, a lot less of them than I do. No, I actually have a lot of them. I always have ghosty. I would say, like, it's important to recognize that it's normal to have those thoughts, because what's going to be a lot worse than having those thoughts is then criticizing yourself for it and getting stuck in this loop of, like, oh, I'm not good enough.
Therapy and Acceptance
Oh, I'm so. I'm such a loser. Oh, why am I criticizing myself? Like, no, it's. It's okay. It's normal. Everybody has those thoughts. If you are a person who feels like your self esteem and your self criticism is getting out of. I know this isn't, like, a fancy answer, but my answer is, honestly, just go to therapy. Because your self esteem stems from a lot of, like, childhood experiences, your experiences in your life, things you've been telling yourself since you were a child. And the best way to fix a problem you're having is to go to a professional and get help with it. You know, it's the most efficient way to solve your problems, and a good therapist is what's going to help you with that.
Recognizing Change and Progress
If you're having self esteem problems that are really impacting your life, if it's not so severe that it's, like, impacting your life and you feel like you want to actually improve it, then just. It's okay. Just accept that. It's a moment. It comes, it passes, and you have a lot of good things to offer the world, so it's okay. Well said. I love this. Very well said. I know we are getting close to our time. We got one more person who'd like to ask a question. And then, ghost Kim, I'll throw it to you to go ahead and start closing down the space.
Acknowledging Influential Figures
Let's give Cod a moment. Come on up and ask you a question, Cod. Go ahead. Yeah. Sorry. No, I didn't real. I didn't realize how close were to the time there. I, I just wanted to say how. How much of a leader, Stacy's has been in my life as far as, like, you know, the compassion and the, just. Just showing the directions to take and things like that. somebody who's always been compassionate, and I just wanted to know Stacy's was there, somebody that kind of led you a leader in your life or somebody that was a, somebody you looked up to that you kind of modeled after, you know?
Importance of Mentorship
Oh, thanks so much for that, Cod. I really appreciate it. I've actually been fortunate enough to have so many good leaders in my life that I'm really thankful if I've retained any of it. Obviously, my mom was a big leader to me. She's a very strong woman who survived a lot of really difficult things, and she is the most empathetic person I know. She cares so much about others, and so she taught me that for. From a young age. I also had plenty of really amazing bosses growing up. So I had a boss called Matt, and I had some bosses, even when I was a teenager, that were great leaders.
Learning from Leadership Experiences
They taught me very early about how to be a good leader by showing empathy, by making sure you put the people first, by choosing good people with good values in your business. You know, and then just working out the rest from there and a lot of other really valuable lessons that I don't know if I would have gotten otherwise from just having that physical experience with them. So, yeah, there's a lot of people in my life that I have to thank for helping me just try to be a better person. And I would say mentorship is one of the most important things out there. So if you want to get better at something and you see someone who is doing a great job at it, just reach out and ask them if you can learn from them, if you can shadow them, if you can ask them questions, because that will be where all the gold mines of information are really hidden away.
Building Connections and Inspiration
I agree so much. Sorry. I agree so much. I mean, like, I actually did that. Like, I met Soki apple pie first, and I saw her og honey, and I loved it so much that I followed her into honeys. And, like, here I am now. And I remember how, like, Stacy's was doing these streams back then on Twitch where you could watch her through all the seasons, and I just, I didn't know they are recorded, and I also didn't know how big the audience is. And, like, I just waffled about crypto monkeys and banana and, like, everything, and it was so much fun.
Impact of Encouragement
And this one day changed so many things for me because suddenly there was someone who encouraged me, and then there was someone I admired who just talked to me and treated me on eye level. And this was so cool that I got a boost from that carried me through months. So it's super important, find someone you admire. Try to find out what you really like about them. And if you want to and feel you can be like this, then just try. You can only improve because it's something you want to be. You see it there. And it helped me a lot through really difficult times.
Acknowledge Your Worth
And I actually have to say, I never had anyone acknowledge what I created before. Like, someone asked me to do something for them, then they expect something, and they just take it, and then it's done. Like, as an artist, you always have, like, a hard time a bit, and I never had that. Like, oh, that's cool. Or, like, I'm proud of you, or, you did a really great job. And, like, meeting someone I admired who then responded this way actually, like, empowered me to trust in, like, my own skills that I can reach this point.
Possibilities and Encouragement
And here I am now. So everything is possible. Just go out there, try it, do it, try it. Like, not to approach the, like, fat whales when you feel like a guppy. Then probably try a fish at your size. But I really, like, encourage you. Just go out there and try. I never would have thought that I'll be here, like two years ago, and now I am. So you, like, you have no idea what you're capable of doing if you don't try it.
Closing Remarks and Future Plans
Very well said. All right, so we are pushing on time. So we will. I think we'll close right here. It's been a great conversation. Stacy's before a hand at Ghost cam. And then before we give it out, is there anything else you'd like to say? Any parting words? Maybe the best place people can follow you and learn more. Yeah. Thank you so much for having me on. You've been amazing hosts and I know you're amazing people as well. Thanks to all the speakers who came up to say something.
Gratitude and Encouragement
You really added value to this conversation. And thank you to everyone for listening. You know, I don't often think of myself as a person who has something valuable to offer, but I hope you got something out of today, even if it's just to know that you can do it. So just take the first step. Take small steps, but you can do it. Absolutely. Thank you so much, Stacey, for your insights, the experience, and taking your time to come and spend with us today. We really appreciate it.
Future Engagements
And I want to thank you again. Ghost Cam, do you have anything else you want to share before we close today's space and hand off to the hosted by the NFTopia team? The same as always. Like, hit me up if you want to speak here. A massive thank you to Stacy for her insights, for all the advice, for the knowledge, for everything you do. You're really such a shining light out there. And to everyone else, I would give the same advice I always do.
Wisdom and Encouragement
The quotes I always use for closing every artist started as an amateur. Good advice. Wolf said go scan. Thank you. All right, folks, wax Wednesday is officially begun. Before we go and break for the day, make sure that you stick around here right on x for the wax drop space will be happening immediately. It'll be hosted by the end of Topia team. Make sure you're also checking out the Nova war tournament that's lasting until the end of this month.
Upcoming Events
I'll be hanging out with Franklin on Friday to check out the update and maybe play a little Nova war myself. You should come and check it out. That'll be happening on Twitch. If you are interested in a trading card bluffing games, please also check out the pantheon beta which is lasting until the end of this month as well. You can check both out both events out inside Wax Hub at Ambassador Wax IO.
Inviting Participation
Finally tune in next week where I will be joined by the lovely Christia and we will be showcasing projects from a latin american teams. Right? So I think I've already got vulnerability agents, which I'm really excited to see, and also the artist who created my very first PFP on Wax, which was VCAT. So come hang out with us next week. We'll see you then. Now, that's all for me.
Final Thanks
Thank you again, ghost Cam, Stacy's, Riles, CoD and Noviks for coming up and speaking and sharing your insights as well. Whether you're listening to us live or checking out the replay while driving home, we're glad to have you here. Thanks for listening and I hope you all have a happy wax Wednesday.
