Māori recording artist unleashes first indigenous avatar rapper into the abyss

That's a rap. Diaz's indigenous avatar is unleashed Friday. Photo / Supplied

New Zealand artist Diaz Grimm is set to agitate the status quo with the release of a disruptive Web3 music project.

Today Diaz will drop the first single, WWĀD, and accompanying Album Ownership Tokens for his newest upcoming project: Māui and The Sin.

With this release, Diaz will step out as the world's first indigenous avatar rapper, creating from the perspective of a musician standing with one foot deeply entrenched in the rich, ancient world of Māoritanga, and the other in a futuristic metaverse.

Another world first - Diaz will sell 100 per cent of his streaming royalties through OpenSourcing. From August 19, a limited series of 100 Album Ownerships Tokens (AOT) will be available for purchase on Whitumecca until November 1st.

This forward thinking approach using Web3 investment could change the music landscape, and the AOTs are a premium collector's item and investment that mutually benefits both artists and the token holders.

Diaz is currently the Web3 consultant for much of the NZ music industry, and is one of only two people selected to represent Aotearoa in Spotify and the Association of Artist Managers' 2022 Co-Pilot programme. As a pioneer at the crossroads of music and technology, Diaz is working to uplift all diverse and independent artists by spearheading a Web3 music movement in Aotearoa.