Funds will support goal of making high-quality music education programs accessible to every child in the Miami-Dade community
Donation is the second installment of Yuga’s $1 million commitment to support arts and education initiatives in Miami
MIAMI–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Yuga Labs, web3 leader and home of Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC), CryptoPunks, Meebits, and more, today announced that it will be partnering with global music platform NTS Radio to donate more than $150,000 to Music Access Miami, a county-wide initiative incubated at The Miami Foundation. Music Access Miami invests in Miami youth by expanding access to music and arts education.
NTS is a platform built by music lovers, for music lovers, and dedicated to discovering and supporting new talent. Yuga enables and encourages owners and creators to build together in one borderless community. Together, they share Music Access Miami’s goal of empowering underserved youth through the transformative power of music, creating the next generation of imaginative talent.
Yuga will be celebrating this announcement and more at the BAYC x NTS Radio: Miami Art Week Wrap Party on December 3rd, where they will match every dollar from food sales generated onsite by the world’s first NFT restaurant, Bored and Hungry, on top of the base $150K donation.
This donation is the second installment of Yuga’s $1 million commitment to support arts and education initiatives in Miami, which launched with a donation of $300,000 to the Venture Miami Scholarship Fund. Yuga co-founders Wylie Aronow and Greg Solano and CEO Nicole Muniz are proud Miami natives, and Yuga is excited to continue to be an active part of the Miami community by giving back to the city where BAYC was born.
“Bored Ape Yacht Club has had a vital link to music, art, and culture since the very beginning. Our community comes together and thrives where technology and culture intersect to spark creativity,” said Wylie Aronow, co-founder of Yuga Labs. “Music Access Miami is making a vital contribution by democratizing access to music education for all Miami youth. We are thrilled to partner with NTS Radio for the latest investment in the vibrant future of our hometown,” added fellow co-founder Greg Solano.
“Doing something for the local community was a huge driver for this project with Yuga Labs, and supporting musical education through Music Access Miami fits perfectly with our mission to share incredible music with passionate people,” said an NTS spokesperson.
“Yuga Labs’s deep investment in education and arts in Miami is incredibly inspiring and models great corporate citizenship,” said Rebecca Fishman Lipsey, president and CEO of The Miami Foundation. “We’re on a mission to ensure all youth in Miami have access to the transformational power of the arts, and this investment will open a lot of doors for our community.”
For more information about Yuga and NTS’ Miami event, see here.
About Yuga Labs
Yuga Labs is a web3 company shaping the future through storytelling, experiences, and community. Guided by the belief that the potential of web3 can be realized when we start with imagination, not limitations, Yuga’s initiatives aim to reinvent what real-world utility for NFTs look like and push the space forward as a whole. Since their launch in April 2021 with flagship collection Bored Ape Yacht Club, they’ve made headlines as one of the first companies to release IP licenses to their NFT holders, acquired and released rights to other top collections (CryptoPunks and Meebits), and made web3 history with record-breaking synchronized player participation in their newest initiative, Otherside. One of the most ambitious interactive metaverse projects to date, Otherside is built with the community, rebelling against traditional walled gardens in gaming spaces. In March 2022, Yuga Labs raised a $450M seed round at a $4B valuation.
About NTS
NTS is a global music platform and radio station, broadcasting from over sixty cities every month. It started as a DIY passion project in Hackney in 2011, with the aim of creating an alternative to stagnant mainstream radio. Since then, NTS has expanded with permanent studios in Los Angeles, Manchester, and Shanghai. The platform has over 600 resident hosts, composed of a mix of musicians, DJs, artists, and everything in between.
Consistently championing the underground scene and a leading voice in alternative culture, over half the music played on NTS isn’t available on Spotify or Apple Music. With a growing global audience of 3 million monthly listeners, NTS is broadcasting the best in underground music on a mass scale – completely free of charge and without on-air advertising.
About Music Access Miami
Powered by The Miami Foundation, with catalytic support by Philanthropist Daniel R. Lewis, Music Access Miami was created to ensure every child in Miami-Dade has access to the power of consistent, high-quality music and arts education. Music Access Miami seeks to expand youth access to music through system-level impact, and increased trust, clarity, and collaboration amongst music leaders in the region. The initiative is comprised of three primary focus areas – building a strong music arts ecosystem, mapping arts education and piloting a community-based collaborative arts education program. We believe the arts are a critical ingredient to thriving, equitable communities, led by engaged youth and families.
Contacts
Yuga Labs
Delaney Simmons
NTS Radio
Will Dickson
