Compiled & edited by TechFlow
Moderator: Laura Shin, Writer and Host of Unchained
Guest: Iggy Azalea
Podcast source: Unchained
原标题：Iggy Azalea on Memes, OnlyFans, and Her Plans to Make MOTHER a Success
Air Date: July 17, 2024
Summary of key points
Iggy Azalea shared the origin story of the $MOTHER token on Unchained, where she said she almost encountered a scammer who wanted to issue a token under her name. In order to protect her reputation, she decided to quickly assemble a team and release her token before the scammer did. She planned a massive marketing campaign to deal with the price drop.
As a master of memes and OnlyFans, she stressed the importance of fostering community and personal interaction, and spoke about how she used her experience in both fields to make MOTHER a success, though she has yet to profit from the token.
She also discussed her conflict with Ethereum founder Vitalik Buterin, and Iggy emphasized the balance between entertainment and functionality and the importance of pop culture in popularizing cryptocurrency. She responded in detail to the allegations of insider trading about MOTHER, explained the chaos when the token was issued, and denied the accusation of selling $2 million in tokens. In order to avoid regulatory action, Iggy hired a team of professional cryptocurrency lawyers and emphasized the importance of complying with the law.
How Iggy got into blockchain and became interested in cryptocurrency
Iggy said that she got into the blockchain field and became interested in cryptocurrency through her younger brother. Although she has some knowledge of cryptocurrency and NFT projects as a celebrity, it was her younger brother who really made her understand and participate in this field in depth. Iggy mentioned that she became more interested in cryptocurrency during the NFT craze in 2021, but was not familiar with the specific operations of meme coins and transactions.
Her brother not only introduced her to these concepts, but also made her excited and curious about this field. Iggy confessed that she often relied on her brother's advice because he had much more experience in this field than she did. Eventually, with her brother's encouragement, Iggy began to actively participate and launched her own cryptocurrency "Mother".
How Iggy’s understanding of memes and the attention economy has influenced her music and the MOTHER project
Iggy's understanding of memes and the attention economy has profoundly influenced her music creation and her "MOTHER" project. Iggy said that she has always been interested in memes and has read a lot of books about memes. As a celebrity, she believes that she is involved in the attention economy, and meme coins are based on this. She mentioned that memes, as a cultural unit, their spread and influence have aroused her strong interest.
Throughout her music career, Iggy has used viral marketing to promote her work. She comes from the YouTube era and rose to fame through viral videos on Twitter and YouTube. For her, creating viral moments is inseparable from her musical success. She often spends a lot of time planning these viral promotions, sometimes even more time than making the music itself.
When her brother introduced her to meme coins and the attention economy, Iggy found herself very familiar with the concepts. She believes that while meme coins may be presented in more traditional ways, such as Pepe or animal illustrations, she believes that memes can be any form of "culturally sticky unit", including language and slang.
Iggy said she likes challenges and likes to be a pioneer, especially in areas where women are less involved. Through the "MOTHER" project, she hopes to try to create a blue chip project. Although she no longer makes music, she has accumulated rich creative and marketing experience in entrepreneurial projects, which enables her to apply these skills to the field of cryptocurrency.
She mentioned that the community and fun nature of cryptocurrencies and meme coins attracted her. Although there is a lot of pressure and learning involved in owning a token, she enjoys the fun of it. She believes that the chaos and challenges remind her of how she felt when she first started her music career, giving her a new energy and excitement.
"Scammer" impersonated, triggering the release of MOTHER
The launch of Iggy’s “MOTHER” project was actually sparked by her encounter with a supposed scammer in the cryptocurrency space, Sahil Arora. Iggy explained that while she personally had not come into direct contact with Sahil, her team had been in touch with him.
Iggy mentioned that she had always been interested in meme coins and had spent the summer digging deeper into the space with her brother. She began discussing with the team what was necessary to launch a project and hoped to find a team to help her with the technical details.
Unfortunately, her team got in touch with Sahil Arora through a common contact. Sahil posted a pre-launch message about Iggy’s token in the Telegram group, even though Iggy was not working with him. Iggy immediately clarified on Twitter that the token had nothing to do with her. However, Sahil countered that Iggy was lying, claiming that the token would still be released. Iggy did not want her name to be associated with such a scam, especially when she had a genuine interest in the space.
To protect her reputation, Iggy decided to quickly put together a team and launch her token before Sahil. She had originally planned to launch the project in late July or early August, but due to this incident, she had to complete the launch within 24 hours. Although the process was very stressful and chaotic, Iggy said she believed in the arrangement of the stars and decided to go with the unexpected situation. In the end, she successfully launched the "MOTHER" project and was satisfied with the results, although the process was full of challenges and pressure.
Iggy's commercialization plan is not just a meme
Iggy plans to integrate her token into multiple business projects and employs a range of strategies to achieve this. Her ultimate goal is to integrate her token and cryptocurrency, specifically the Solana blockchain, into as many of her business operations as possible and add more functionality to her token.
Iggy plans to integrate her token and other cryptocurrency payment options in her mobile communications company Unreal Mobile. Users can pay for their mobile phone plans with cryptocurrencies, which is an innovative way to pay.
Dreambolt is a gifting platform with 17 million product SKUs. Users can buy or gift any linked item on this social network. Iggy plans to offer a 10% discount to users who use her tokens to make it more attractive. Users can buy everything from Apple headphones to Louis Vuitton handbags.
Iggy hopes to attract more people who are not in the cryptocurrency community through her token. She believes that by integrating cryptocurrency payments in her products, she can stimulate the interest of those who are not familiar with cryptocurrency. She hopes that her token will not only be an entertaining memes coin, but also provide actual value in retail and payment.
Iggy recognizes that there is a debate about functionality and entertainment in the meme coin space. She hopes to find a balance so that her token has both the community and entertainment of traditional meme coins, while quietly adding utility without disrupting the user experience.
Iggy realizes that many people outside the cryptocurrency field have difficulty understanding its value. She hopes to make it easier for these people to accept and understand by increasing the utility of tokens, such as payment functions. This helps answer the question of "why" and allows more people to understand and accept the value of cryptocurrency.
Iggy also plans to create a Mother Ventures fund to identify and invest in other non-memes coin projects, further expanding her business footprint.
Through these strategies, Iggy hopes that her token will not only be an entertainment project, but also provide value to users in real applications, while attracting more people to the cryptocurrency field.
Why DWF Labs and Wintermute were chosen as market makers, and why the name “Mother” was chosen
DWF Labs is very strong in the Asian market, and Iggy believes that their expertise and influence in the region is very important for her project. She hopes to use DWF Labs' resources and connections to break into the Asian market, which is a challenge for a project in the United States. DWF Labs can help her reach the right influencers and business opportunities to make her project successful in the Asian market.
Wintermute has a great reputation in the cryptocurrency space. Iggy hopes to demonstrate the legitimacy and credibility of her project to other exchanges and market participants through her partnership with Wintermute. As a celebrity token, Iggy knows that many celebrity tokens are scams, so she needs a reputable market maker to support her project in order to convince others that her project is serious and credible.
Iggy chose “Mother” as the name of the token because the concept of motherhood is universal and culturally significant. Everyone has a mother, which makes the concept broadly appealing and relatable.
Iggy believes that in addition to visual memes, language itself can also become a meme. She hopes to create a concept that can spread and become popular on the Internet through the word "Mother".
Iggy hopes that through this open naming, the community will decide what specific memes are. She believes that if memes are defined too specifically, it may limit their potential for dissemination and popularity. Therefore, she chose a broader and more open concept, allowing the community and the Internet to naturally determine its development direction.
Currently, the memes of the token "Mother" mainly revolve around Iggy's personal image, which has attracted a lot of attention and discussion on social media. Although this may not be her original idea, this natural evolution is in line with her understanding of meme culture, that they are spontaneously determined by the community and the Internet.
By choosing DWF Labs and Wintermute as market makers, and naming her token “Mother,” Iggy demonstrated her strategic forethought and community engagement. These decisions not only contribute to her project’s success in different markets, but also strengthen its legitimacy and appeal in the cryptocurrency space.
From OnlyFans to MOTHER, community relationships always win
Iggy learned a lot about the importance of community cultivation and personal interaction from her experience on the OnlyFans platform, which she applied very helpfully to her MOTHER project. Here are a few ways she applied these lessons to MOTHER:
On OnlyFans, Iggy found that many users were more eager for human interaction and friendship rather than just content consumption. She established a deep emotional connection through daily conversations and interactions with users. This one-on-one interaction made users feel cared for and valued. She applied this to the MOTHER project, building a closer community relationship through voice messages and direct conversations with users in Telegram groups.
Iggy also learned how to create small groups within the community and promote cross-friendships between users. This approach helps build a more close-knit and interactive community, making users not just passive consumers of content, but part of the community.
On OnlyFans, Iggy found that user loyalty and engagement often transcended monetary transactions. For example, some users would contact her through other platforms to express their love and support when they were unable to pay for their subscriptions. This shows that emotional connection and belonging are of great value in the community. She applied this to the MOTHER project, striving to create an emotional value that goes beyond money, so that users remain engaged and loyal when the market fluctuates.
Iggy realized that on OnlyFans, income depended more on her exposure on other platforms or in the media than on the content she posted on OnlyFans. It was an attention economy, and she attracted more users to her OnlyFans page through her activity on other platforms. She applied this strategy to the MOTHER project, attracting more users to join and participate by increasing exposure on social media and other platforms.
Iggy’s experience on OnlyFans taught her that building a successful community takes time and sustained effort. While her income on OnlyFans was very high at the beginning, long-term success depends on continued community cultivation. Similarly, with the MOTHER project, she took a long-term perspective and focused on building a lasting community and project rather than pursuing short-term profits.
Through the application of these experiences, Iggy hopes to build a strong, interactive and valuable community in the MOTHER project, making it more than just a memes coin project, but a community with real value and emotional connection.
Iggy responds to Vitalik Buterin's criticism
Iggy responded to Vitalik Buterin’s criticism. Vitalik once expressed his dissatisfaction with the current celebrity token experiments on Twitter, and believed that these experiments should focus more on meaningful goals such as medical care, open source software, and art. Iggy’s response mainly includes the following points:
Iggy believes that both the Internet and the cryptocurrency space need a balance between entertainment and functionality. She pointed out that the Internet was originally created for practical purposes, but as culture intervened, it also became a world full of entertainment and non-functional content. She believes that cryptocurrency and Web3 also need this balance, requiring people like Vitalik who focus on functional and moral goals, as well as elements of entertainment and pop culture.
Iggy stressed that pop culture and entertainment have played an important role in attracting mass participation and popularizing cryptocurrencies. She believes that although celebrity tokens are not necessarily necessary, elements of pop culture can help a wider range of people understand and accept cryptocurrencies. Through her project MOTHER, she hopes to integrate pop culture into the cryptocurrency space to achieve wider popularization.
Iggy acknowledged that some aspects of what Vitalik said were correct, especially regarding the narcissistic and offensive elements that celebrity tokens can carry. However, she also pointed out that her MOTHER project is not just a celebrity token, but a broader memes coin project that aims to create a wider appeal. She mentioned that her project already has charitable plans and has donated more than $200,000 to a wildlife conservation organization in Australia.
Iggy elaborated on her charity project. She is working with the Krumman Sanctuary in Australia to help protect endangered koalas. She explained that koalas are threatened with extinction and need to be protected from chlamydia through vaccination. She believes that this charity project not only fits her personal interests and background, but also fits in with the theme of her token "Mother", which emphasizes the concept of care and protection.
Iggy also talked about the importance of the entertainment economy. She pointed out that on OnlyFans, her income depends more on her exposure on other platforms or media than on the content she posts on OnlyFans. She applied this strategy to the MOTHER project, attracting more users to join and participate by increasing exposure on social media and other platforms. At the same time, she took a long-term perspective and focused on building a lasting community and project instead of pursuing short-term profits.
Through these responses, Iggy demonstrates her deep understanding of the cryptocurrency space and her determination to promote the integration of pop culture and cryptocurrency. Through her project MOTHER, she hopes to create a community that is both entertaining and of real value, thereby achieving wider popularity and acceptance.
What strategies does Iggy think will help $MOTHER recover from its slump?
In the interview, Iggy responded in detail to the issue of the MOTHER token price drop. Here are her main points and plans:
Iggy admitted that the price drop of the MOTHER token was partly due to the decline in the overall market. However, she believes that MOTHER's market performance is lower than expected, even taking into account the impact of the overall market. She said that if it were just market factors, MOTHER's market value should be between $80 million and $90 million, instead of the current $35 million.
Iggy said she could have taken action earlier to correct the price trend, but was advised by her consultant that this was just normal market fluctuations. She now realizes that MOTHER's performance is below market expectations and needs to take more active measures to improve.
Iggy detailed her future plans to drive the value of the MOTHER token back up:
Dream Vault Project: She plans to launch the Dream Vault project and allow payments using MOTHER tokens. She believes this is an important utility feature that will add value to the token.
Mother Knows Best Podcast: She is launching a podcast called Mother Knows Best, which is scheduled to start in late August. She hopes to attract more attention and engagement through this podcast and the related digital marketing campaign.
Exchange listing: Although she has plans to list MOTHER on more exchanges, she does not want MOTHER to be a token that is only noticed because of exchange announcements. She believes that greater practical functions and appeal are needed to drive the token value back up.
Iggy mentioned that she is working with DWF to plan a large-scale marketing campaign in the Asian market. She believes that MOTHER is still not well-known in the Asian market, which will be a major growth opportunity. She hopes to attract more users and investors through its debut in the Asian market.
Iggy admits that the market is currently fatigued with celebrity tokens and the overall market. She hopes that the market recovery and her major projects will drive the value of MOTHER tokens back up. She also recognizes that being a celebrity token has a certain double-edged sword effect. Although the celebrity effect can attract initial attention, it may also bring short-term speculation and uncertainty.
Iggy said she is confident in the long-term prospects of the MOTHER token. She mentioned that many successful tokens have experienced explosive growth after experiencing a sharp correction and accumulation at low levels. Although she cannot guarantee that the MOTHER token will reach similar heights, she will do her best to promote the development of the project.
Iggy emphasized that she does not rely solely on market fluctuations to drive the value of the token. She has many behind-the-scenes plans to increase the utility and community engagement of the token. She hopes that through these efforts, she can create a more stable and attractive market environment for the MOTHER token.
Through these responses, Iggy demonstrated her deep understanding of the MOTHER token and her determination to promote the project. She hopes that through the addition of practical functions, market expansion and community building, the value of the MOTHER token will rebound and achieve long-term success.
Denies allegations of insider trading and dumping of $2 million in tokens
Iggy vehemently denied that she had sold $2 million worth of tokens. She said that such accusations made her very upset because she was not involved in such activities. She pointed out that multiple platforms and institutions such as Deck Screener and Wintermu have reviewed her tokens and given them a 99% legitimacy rating.
Iggy explained that she bought tokens from the market like everyone else when the tokens were released. She spent about $1.2 million to buy tokens and ended up holding about 3% of the supply. She has allocated these tokens to DWF and Wintermu, and has burned some of them, about $250,000 to $300,000 in tokens.
Iggy described in detail the confusion surrounding the token launch. She explained that before she announced the contract address, there were already rumors in the market that her token would be called MOTHER. This led to many people buying the token in advance, leaving her with a large number of unidentified holders at launch. She said this situation made her very worried because she couldn't be sure whether these holders would sell the tokens in the short term, thus affecting the market price.
Regarding Bubble Maps’ allegations, Iggy said that she did not know the people accused of insider trading. She believed that these people may have used AI or other technical means to learn about the tokens in advance and made large purchases. She emphasized that these people were not her insiders and she could not control their behavior.
Iggy described the psychological pressure when the token price fluctuated greatly. She said that when the token price dropped from $50 million to $4 million, she felt very panicked because she could not control the market trend. She believed that this situation was a huge challenge faced by being a celebrity token issuer.
Despite the huge market pressure and uncertainty, Iggy said she stuck to her original plan and did not choose to abandon or change the concept of the token. She believes that as the founder of the project, it is her responsibility to stick with it even if the market performs poorly.
Iggy emphasized that she hopes to promote the long-term success of the token by increasing the utility and community building of the token. She said that although she has not yet made a profit from the token, she is confident in the future and will continue to work hard to promote the development of the project.
Is she worried about being tracked by regulators, and what she is doing about it?
Iggy said she is well aware of the regulatory issues other celebrities have faced when entering the cryptocurrency space. For example, Kim Kardashian settled with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for promoting a certain token, and Floyd Mayweather was also charged for promoting a scam. She also mentioned that celebrities such as Tom Brady, Larry David, and Gisele Bündchen were affected by the FTX fraud incident.
In order to deal with possible legal and regulatory issues, Iggy immediately hired a team of professional cryptocurrency lawyers, including Fenwick and West and Guidepost. She explained that these lawyers helped her understand how to operate the token project legally and avoid violating the law. She emphasized that these legal teams review her tweets every day and provide legal advice to ensure that her actions comply with regulations.
Iggy stressed that as a non-US citizen, she takes compliance with US laws very seriously. She noted that if she commits any illegal acts in the US, it could lead to her being deported, which is the scariest thing for her. She explained that her legal team not only helped her understand what is and is not a security, but also helped her understand the language and emojis that should be avoided in tweets and marketing.
Iggy mentioned that there are a lot of legal gray areas in the cryptocurrency space, which makes it difficult for her to get clear answers by searching online. Therefore, she relies on multiple legal opinions from her legal team to ensure that her actions are legal. She said that this multiple legal opinions make her feel more comfortable when dealing with token projects.
Iggy believes that celebrities need to be more cautious when promoting cryptocurrencies. She pointed out that while adults are responsible for their own investment behavior, celebrities, as public figures, have a great influence on fans and investors through their words and deeds. Therefore, she believes that celebrities need to be morally responsible for the products and projects they promote, especially when real money investment is involved.
Iggy said that if she faces a fine for promoting the token, she thinks it is fair because the market needs some level of regulation to protect investors. She stressed that celebrities need to recognize their responsibilities when promoting cryptocurrencies and consider the real impact their actions have on investors’ lives.
Iggy's thoughts on celebrities issuing memecoins
Iggy said she understands some people’s criticism of celebrities issuing meme tokens, especially those who are just entering the cryptocurrency field for quick profits. She pointed out that many celebrities just want to publish a contract address and then try to extract liquidity from it without really investing time and energy to develop the community or promote the long-term growth of the token.
Iggy stressed that she is not the kind of celebrity who enters the cryptocurrency space just for a quick profit. Although she did not have much experience when she entered the field, she is now actively involved in trading and investing, and is working with Joe McCann to develop a venture capital company. She said that she has a real interest in the cryptocurrency field and hopes to bring value to the field through her efforts.
Iggy mentioned that she often gives advice to other celebrities who want to launch tokens. She believes that celebrities should first participate in cryptocurrency transactions privately and understand the field before considering launching their own tokens. This ensures that they have a deeper understanding of the field rather than just entering it for a quick profit.
Iggy believes that celebrities and ordinary people alike have the right to enter the cryptocurrency community in any way they see fit. She believes that it is important to truly participate in the community after entering it, rather than just extracting liquidity. She emphasized that as long as celebrities truly want to contribute to the community, then their entry method is not important.
Iggy reflected on the critics’ points and said that she understands the concerns behind these criticisms. She believes that celebrities need to be responsible for their actions, especially when it comes to real money investments. She hopes that celebrities will take their role in the cryptocurrency space seriously and ensure that their actions do not negatively impact investors.
Which one does Iggy prefer: Solana or Ethereum?
Iggy believes that Solana and Ethereum are completely different blockchains. She pointed out that Ethereum has its own unique cultural influence, especially in 2021, when many discussions about NFTs and other entertainment projects have focused on Ethereum.
Iggy believes that Solana is more influential in some ways at the moment, especially in terms of speed and cost. She mentioned that Solana is seen as a faster and cheaper option and has a greater influence in pop culture. She believes that Solana has been branded as a "trendy" option to some extent, attracting a lot of users who are interested in meme coins.
Despite her praise for Solana, Iggy stressed that Ethereum will always be around and very important. She doesn’t see Ethereum as just a “legacy gatekeeper” but rather an essential part of the ecosystem.
Iggy doesn’t like to compare Solana to Ethereum directly. She believes that the two have their own advantages and necessities at different stages of their life cycle. She hopes to be able to participate in the development of the Solana project. Although she will not develop directly herself, she hopes to bring liquidity and support to the Solana project through venture capital and other means.
Iggy said Solana’s place in pop culture was the main reason it caught her attention. She likes Solana’s rapid rise in pop culture and believes it is good for the entire cryptocurrency ecosystem.
Iggy concluded by saying that both blockchains play important roles in the ecosystem and neither can be missing. She hopes to see more projects develop on Solana, while also recognizing the continued importance of Ethereum.
How she guides other celebrities into crypto, and her plans to integrate $MOTHER into mainstream culture and fan engagement
Iggy said she very much hopes to guide celebrities into the cryptocurrency field, but she also recognizes that it is not easy. She mentioned that many celebrities are interested in cryptocurrency, but they need a structured and credible way to enter this field. She hopes to work with large institutions like Live Nation to create a structure similar to a record company, making it easier for celebrities to issue and manage their tokens.
Iggy stressed that it is not enough to simply issue tokens, these tokens need to have practical uses and be integrated into the celebrity’s fan culture. She proposed some specific application scenarios, such as:
Priority meeting opportunities: Fans can get priority to meet celebrities by holding tokens.
Special Merchandise: Token holders can purchase limited edition merchandise.
Discounted Tickets: Tokens can be used to purchase concert tickets and enjoy discounts.
Iggy believes that there is not enough structural support in the market to help celebrities enter the cryptocurrency field smoothly. She mentioned some possible solutions, such as working with Live Nation to leverage its existing touring and signed artist resources, and some technical solutions such as Tip Link or Uphold to simplify transactions and token management.
Iggy’s long-term goal is to be a key driver in this process, helping to create a structure that benefits both celebrities and the cryptocurrency community. She hopes to prove that this model is viable and provide a successful example for other celebrities.
Iggy also mentioned that she hopes to better integrate the $MOTHER token into mainstream culture and fan interaction. She believes that the $MOTHER token can become a new way for fans to interact with her by providing real use and value. She is in discussions with some large players and technology startups to explore how to achieve this goal.
Iggy said she is currently developing these ideas and hopes to have more progress in the next six months. She hopes to be a big mover in this space and help other celebrities successfully enter the cryptocurrency market.
