Jack Harlow, Palaye Royale, and other music artists are using blockchain to connect with fans — and build profitable online communities

• The Web3 platforms Mith and Medallion use blockchain to modernize artist-fan relations in music.
• Blockchains allow artists to be more engaged with supporters and informed on business strategies.
• Jack Harlow, Mac Ayres, Palaye Royale, and Disclosure are among the artists leaning into blockchain.
• This article is part of “Build IT,” a series about digital tech and innovation trends that are disrupting industries.

In his 2017 music video for “Dark Knight,” Jack Harlow delivers slick quips on a bass-heavy beat. “I don’t ride waves, I don’t switch no sound / I don’t hang 10, I’m 10 toes down,” he swaggers, clad in a T-shirt, jeans, and New Balance sneakers.

The video, steeped in the energy of an artist on the brink of stardom, was the first one Kamira Roberson, now a Harlow superfan, ever saw from the rapper. She initially came across his account on X, formerly known as Twitter, and thought he was funny and charming, she told Business Insider. After listening to “Dark Knight,” she was hooked. 

Fast-forward to 2024, and Roberson is enjoying Harlow’s burgeoning fame. In July, she attended a private party for Harlow’s fans in Las Vegas. Four months later, in November, she became a member of his blockchain-supported Private Garden fan club, which offers exclusive access to perks such as preshow fan gatherings, expedited show entry with the potential for seat upgrades, and the ability to unlock limited-edition merchandise.

Harlow’s Private Garden community reflects the evolution of fan clubs as companies leverage Web3 tech to modernize artist-fan relations. Web3 — the next generation of the web, which operates on a decentralized blockchain network — is giving artists more control over outreach and direct access to fan data, averting musicians’ dependence on insights from third-party distributors.

The blockchain-supported platforms Mith, which is in its pilot stage as it powers Harlow’s Private Garden website, and Medallion are at the forefront of this shift. 

According to the company’s website, Mith is a fan-relationship platform that allows artists to “control how they create, connect with, and distribute to their fans.” Its features include subscriptions, content publishing, and access to information about special events.

Medallion is a platform for artists to create a branded digital hub with social and e-commerce features, sell premium merchandise, and gain insights into fan behavior. 

With these offerings, the two platforms are helping reshape artist-fan connections and providing a glimpse into the future of fan engagement.

Marrying Web2 and Web3 through the ‘tech mullet’ approach

The record-breaking successes of Beyoncé’s and Taylor Swift’s sold-out world tours have made it clear that fans are willing to pay a hefty price to see their favorite artists. But aside from tours, tangible artist-fan experiences are lacking.

Blockchain presents innovative solutions to this challenge as it fuels interactive fan platforms, while giving musicians more autonomy. Still, it feels relatively new and obscure.

To make blockchain more accessible to and approachable for artists and fans, Mith and Medallion have adopted a hybrid model, blending elements of Web2 and Web3. Coined by Mith as a “tech mullet,” this approach combines the familiarity of Web2 components, such as email logins and social-media-style profiles, with Web3 back-end technologies such as blockchain-powered tools. 

These tools eliminate intermediaries by enabling direct peer-to-peer transactions for digital-content distribution. They can also verify the authenticity of data and digital assets with unique identifiers etched into a blockchain system, offering an enhanced sense of security compared with traditional websites.

Artists who are on-chain, meaning they operate on blockchain networks, can harness these capabilities and directly profit from the sales of digital downloads and merchandise — all while facilitating fan engagement through additional means, such as tokenized rewards systems.

Mith uses blockchain to track ‘the ledger of a fan’s journey’

With a star-studded clientele, including Halle Berry and Emilia Clarke, who serve as talent advisors, Mith has cracked the code for creating an uncomplicated tech platform that’s enticing to celebrities and fans. The company’s main attraction is its network of private communities, which are accessible only through paid memberships, and exclusive experiences. 

Harlow, for example, used his Private Garden venture to highlight the Jack Harlow Foundation, which he launched last year to “reinvest, uplift, and support organizations aiming to make Louisville and the broader state of Kentucky a better place to live,” he said in a statement to BI. 

“The launch of my Private Garden community marks the first time we’re accepting donations to the Jack Harlow Foundation in any capacity, thus extending its reach, impact, and purpose,” he added.

Michelle Sanchez, a cofounder and the CEO of Mith, told BI that the company could also leverage blockchain tech to securely record “various aspects of a fan’s engagement.” This includes ticket-purchasing behavior, social-media interactions, streaming preferences, and check-ins at in-person events. These data points, she said, form “a comprehensive and unalterable ledger of a fan’s journey” that informs how artists connect with their supporters. 

“This immutable record not only enhances transparency and trust within fan communities but also provides creators and artists with a holistic view of their audience’s preferences and behaviors,” Sanchez added. “It revolutionizes how creators tailor their content, rewards, and interactions, fostering deeper connections and more personalized experiences for their most dedicated fans.”

Medallion promotes artist-fan collaboration on blockchain

Medallion has its own method of creating an effective fan-experience platform as it aims for three main goals: fan ownership, artist control, and ecosystem opportunities.

Joe Pitts, the director of artist partnerships at Medallion, told BI that blockchain tech allowed users to own digital assets called “medallions” — nonfungible tokens claimed as proof of engagement, such as attending a concert. It also lets them keep a verifiable record of their actions on the platform, including when they buy merch. 

“We’re building an end-to-end superfan experience platform that fits artists’ needs,” Pitts said. “So with Medallion, artists have a space for their fans to gather. We have turnkey ways for them to deliver early access to music and tickets, as well as native commerce formats for superfans all while capturing valuable fan data that the artist 100% owns.”

The platform — which has a talent roster that includes Mac Ayres, Galantis, Disclosure, and Santigold — provides advantages to artists, such as creative control over their fan clubs’ branding and full ownership of data that helps improve marketing strategies for revenue growth.

“With Medallion, the artist is the platform,” Pitts said. “So we allow artists to direct fan connections, allowing deeper engagement where they can share more about their art in a safe and intimate space for their biggest fans. It’s free to use, and we integrate with an artist’s core business areas, from music and ticketing to collectibles and merch.”

The band Palaye Royale uses Medallion as a digital base for its fan community called the Royal Council. Emerson Barrett, the group’s drummer, said the shift toward interactive virtual fan clubs was a game changer in this era of online connectivity.

“World-building is a big part of what we do in Palaye Royale, but we’ve never had the tools to be able to fully realize that in the digital space,” Barrett told BI. “Medallion gives artists the opportunity to rethink the traditional way musicians connect with their fans, enabling the ability to expand the community beyond music and into a fully immersive, experiential environment.”

Pitts agreed that blockchain tech was a foundation for collaboration that allowed “fans to get closer to an artist and the artist closer to their fans.” He added: “That interconnectivity offers new opportunities: trading, sharing, owning — really showing off your fandom in a verifiable, public way.”

Adopting blockchain tech to power the future of fan engagement

As blockchain continues to influence the music industry, companies considering its adoption must weigh various factors. The choice of blockchain tech, its alignment with specific requirements, and the overall impact on user experience are crucial aspects. 

Mith’s and Medallion’s success lies in using blockchain tech that’s seamless and engaging for the end user. “We’re beyond the ‘let’s create an NFT collection and make fast cash because everyone is doing it’ era,” Sanchez said. “Speculation is out, and real-world application is in.” 

That means focusing on user experience, utility, and safety — not just profit — is paramount.

Looking ahead, Mith and Medallion are poised to bring further innovations in fan engagement. Mith plans to advance from its pilot stage to a beta phase later this year. Its expanded version is set to include exclusive content and a gamified loyalty system, among other new features, Sanchez told BI.

“Mith will provide the creator with publishing and broadcast tools, first-party data, analytics, AI insights, and infrastructure to paint a 360-degree view of their fandom, while delivering a beautiful and engaging fan experience,” she said.

Meanwhile, Pitts envisions a world where Medallion and other Web3 platforms use blockchain to foster stronger connections within fan communities and art worlds. “That’s where we’re moving,” Pitts said. “Setting that foundation up for future use cases is going to be really important for any kind of creator, their fan base, and their community.”