For many of us who spent our teenage years surfing the internet, we’ve watched countless trends come and go. One of the biggest trends? Internet memes. Recently, we’ve seen these funny images take a new twist by becoming meme NFTs. In this article, we’ll explore how memes took off and found their way into the NFT world.
What’s a Meme?
Saint Hoax, a popular meme creator describes a meme as a piece of media that is repurposed to deliver a cultural, social or political expression, mainly through humor. It has the ability to capture insight in a way that is in complete alignment with the zeitgeist.
What makes internet memes so relatable is that people from all over the globe can find humor in them, no matter where they originated.
A Bit of History
The term “internet meme” was first introduced by Mike Godwin back in 1993. He talked about this idea through emails, message boards, and Usenet groups. Once social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube became popular, memes really took off. People jumped in, using them to create parodies and jokes. It wasn’t long before websites that generate memes started popping up, making it even easier for everyone to join the fun.
As memes went viral, they also found their way into advertising. This became known as memetic marketing. Big brands like Gucci, Netflix, and BarkBox started using memes to connect with their audiences.
Some of the earliest popular memes, like Bad Luck Brian, Nyan Cat, and Doge, played a huge role in shaping meme culture. So, it made perfect sense that these memes would eventually be sold as expensive meme NFTs.
The First Meme NFTs
The first meme NFT sold was Bad Luck Brian. It was sold in March 2021 for around $36,000. Then, in June of that same year, the Doge meme sold for a whopping $4 million.
The success of meme NFTs shows that digital images, especially digital collectible art can actually be worth a significant amount of money. But even more importantly, they give proper credit to the creators behind them. An example would be musicians who used to depend heavily on record labels, which would take a large share of their earnings. Now, with music NFTs, they have the opportunity to earn directly from their work. Meme NFT creators can enjoy the same opportunity by getting paid directly, and many of them are excited about this change. Laina Morris is an example of this. Laina became known for the Overly Attached Girlfriend Meme. After she sold her meme NFT for more than $400,000 she went to Twitter to thank them for making it possible.
What’s Next?
Even with these impressive sales, many experts are hesitant to predict the future of meme NFTs. Meme culture keeps changing, and there’s a strong belief that the memes we see becoming popular in the next few years will likely turn into NFTs too.
