Here are 10 people who are literally making black history in Web3

Black people are leading the crypto revolution. As a population group that has historically been left out, or bullied out, of emerging markets such as marijuana, SexTech and more – many are now eager to be a part of the virtual new world. For Black History Month, we wanted to take the opportunity to highlight and celebrate their leadership in Web3. Without these fearless creators, disrupters, investors and visionaries we would not be where we are today. Web3 is developing at lightspeed with only one direction: Into the Future. If we want to create a future for everyone, a future that questions and dismantles inequalities and privileges, we need to give credit to and support the leaders of Web3 building for and with black communities. They are the ones that are going to make sure that in the new (digital) world, every month is black history month.

 

Here are 10 people who are literally making black history in Web3:

 

1.Sirsu

 

Sirsu was a professional FGC, TGCs, PRGs and FPS player from 2004-2013 who earned over $25K in tournament earnings. When the pandemic started in 2020, Sirsu and his friends, Blvk0ut, Rolvel, and ATM, started a streaming group called BLVKHVND to pass the time and compete as an eSports team. The only problem was, they all had different systems, equipment, internet speeds, access to games… shortly after that a new crypto-native, decentralized eSports community was born.

Apart from his key role in creating BLVKHVND, Sirsu is also known as the founder of #CRYPTOCOOKOUT. Sirsu set out to gather a community to purchase black cryptopunks. His mission was a huge success and changed the way people value black identifying Avatar NFTs. The digital reclamation of identity is one of the core tenets Sirsu practices in this space and it lends credence to his working thesis on Creative Immortality.

 

2. Diana Sinclair

Where to begin with Diana Sinclair… The 17-year-old (yes, you read that correctly) artist has taken Web3 by storm. In November 2020, she was selected as a 2021 YoungArts National Finalist in Photography, and since then has been exploring experimental video art and multimedia layering. She has had her artwork shown in numerous exhibits all over the world and she became one of the youngest curators within the NFT space through solely curating The Digital Diaspora show in June.

In July this year, she was selected for Fortune’s “NFTy 50: The 50 most influential people in NFTs”. As a young person surrounded by tech, Diana believes that the next renaissance will grow from the intersection of art and technology, and is passionate about creating work that embraces this evolution.

Diana’s most recent NFT project, the Whitney Houston x Diana Sinclair collaboration sold for $999,999 (that’s 260+ ETH, 224,178 TEZ) amongst the most expensive NFTs ever… more than five times the record on the tezos blockchain.

 

3. Brittany Pierre

Brittany Pierre is a photographer and filmmaker based in Chicago. In 2021, Brittany Pierre made over $109,000 selling nonfungible tokens, or NFTs, of her photography and flipping other NFTs she bought for a profit. With the help of a few friends who connected her, Pierre was invited to NFT marketplace Foundation in March by photographer Zak Krevitt. Pierre sees cryptocurrency and NFTs as a way to build generational wealth since they allow her to invest and earn money without dealing with traditional financial systems.

 

4. Kofi Kufuor aka NiftyTable

Kofi is the data wizard Web3 has been waiting for. His NFT market data has become an invaluable resource for everyone involved in the NFT space. He started the NiftyTable project to help NFT enthusiasts understand the landscape a bit better and get a birds-eye view of who is making money, where and how so that we can all make informed decisions. Kofi’s goal is to crunch market data and draw insights so that you don’t have to.

We have a feeling the data collected by Kofi for his project is going to be massively impactful in future research about the crypto and NFT space. Kofi is also a partner at @1confirmation -a cryptocurrency-focused investment firm.

 

5. Robby Greenfield

Hailing from Atlanta, USA Robby Greenfield shows us how entrepreneurship is done. As CEO of @EmergingImpact_, Robby’s mission is to bring DeFi to smallholder farmers and underserved communities across Sub-Saharan Africa and APAC.

His general approach is to amplify ways in which blockchain technology can be used for altruistic and development purposes. Robby is also Co-Founder of @earnVVS, Fmr Head of Social Impact at @Consensys and Co-Founder of @ethereum4impact and @unblockedcash. 

 

6. Lyonna Lyu

Lyonna Lyu is an illustrator and iconographer using NFT technology to document Eritrean culture and history in a capacity where it cannot be destroyed, misrepresented, or stolen as has been a pattern for African art in the past. Their artworks are influenced by their experiences, exploring themes relating to politics, cultural exchanges, and social constructs in the worlds they are a part of. “The beauty in life is how individualistic our stories are while simultaneously connected to the past, present, and future of humanity’s timeline.” – the artist says on their website to describe what motivates their creations.

 

7. LATASHÁ

Latashá is a prominent web3 artist and community leader. She was the first artist to ever mint a music video as an NFT. the video sold within 3 minutes. Latasha is paving the way for other young musicians using blockchain technology to reclaim their autonomy. All the while breaking new ground and finding success as an independent artist releasing music NFTs.

 

8. Brandon Buchanan

Brandon is the Founder and Managing Partner of Meta4 Capital (“Meta4”), a cryptocurrency-focused fund that invests in non-fungible tokens (“NFTs”). Prior to Meta4, Brandon Co-Founded Iterative Capital Management, LP (“Iterative”), an alternative investment fund that specialized in cryptocurrency mining.  Iterative raised over $25M across its five vehicles, delivering exceptional returns to its investors. Brandon has also held the role of Chief Operating Officer and General Counsel of Metamorphic Ventures.  Brandon started his career in venture capital as a Corporate Associate at Gunderson Dettmer, where he advised startups and funds on a range of matters from formation and financings to exit. Other experiences include M&A banking at Credit Suisse and Securities Law at WilmerHale.

Brandon is a graduate of Brown University and Harvard Law School.

 

9. Sian Morson

Sian Morson is the founder of The BlkChain, which began as a weekly newsletter in March of 2021. the intent was to give a voice to women and BIPOC artists in the NFT space. Two months later, after experiencing tremendous growth, it became evident that a more robust presence was needed.  Today, The BlkChain is the premier destination for coverage of NFT art and music with a focus on the culture.

 

 

10. Latoya Peterson

Latoya Peterson lives at the intersection of emerging technology and culture. Named one of Forbes Magazine’s 30 Under 30 rising stars in media, she is best known for the award-winning blog Racialicious.com – talking about topics on the intersection of race and pop culture. She is co-founder, CXO, and Director for the Culture at Glow Up Games, a creative R & D studio telling beautifully crafted stories using mobile, AR/VR, AI, and other emerging technologies. In 2018, she soft-launched AI in the Trap, a collaborative art project that explores the future of artificial intelligence and predictive policing through a hip-hop lens.