Music producer, artist, fashion designer, and entrepreneur Steve Aoki has made major waves in the still-expanding metaverse, and the NFT visionary is now gracing the cover of the infamous fantasy and science fiction magazine HEAVY METAL. The cover art was created by Greg Hildebrandt (@HildebrandtGreg) best known for his legendary Star Wars poster from 1977. The collectible is launching as an NFT collection on his Oddkey (@OddKeyNFT) marketplace platform built in partnership with comic book icon Todd McFarlane (creator of both Spawn and Venom). The NEON FUTURE x HEAVY METAL by Greg Hildebrandt release will be an animated collection of 777 NFTs inspired by Heavy Metal Magazine’s (@HeavyMetalInk) May cover and featuring characters from his critically acclaimed Neon Future comic book, published by Tom Bilyeu’s (@tombilyeu) Impact Theory. Varying in rarity and covetability, this collection will be allowlisted on August 29th at 9AM – 2PM PST for 1 SOL to the Oddkey, A0K1VERSE, Heavy Metal and Impact Theory communities, and then available for public sale on August 29th at 2PM PST for 1.5 SOL
“I partnered up with Steve to help build our NFT platform because of moments like this! Steve has been swimming in the NFT space much longer than the rest of us, he knew the possibilities before many had even heard of Non-Fungible Tokens. Our first two drops on Oddkey.com blew out in hours and I’ve been waiting for Steve’s first drop since we started our partnership.
Now, mix in a long standing brand like Heavy Metal, add in the creative talents of Greg Hildebrandt then sprinkle that on top of Steve’s creative process and this, I’m sure will be another piece of history that will sell out immediately. That’s a promise. Next we will be bringing on other creators onto Oddkey.com to expand the momentum we’ve begun to build.” Todd McFarlane
Neon Future x Heavy Metal NFT by Greg Hildebrandt is Steve Aoki’s first collection to launch on he and Todd McFarlane’s (@Todd_McFarlane) Solana-based NFT marketplace, Oddkey (oddkey.com/). The highly anticipated collection features a limited edition version of Heavy Metal Magazine’s May 2022 cover, illustrated by Greg Hildebrandt and featuring Neon Future comic’s emotional lead Kita Sovee, saber in hand (modeled after Aoki) along with main characters Clay and Dee. The unique collection of 777 NFTs will include hand drawn one of one digital signatures by all of the principals in creating the piece; 43 with Aoki’s signature, 43 with Greg Hildebrandt’s signature and 43 with Impact Theory founder Tom Bilyeu. Only 7 will contain signatures from all three men. The NFTs will drop in a blindbox fashion keeping the signature (or lack thereof) a secret to members until receiving a complete mystery post-mint. This exciting new drop model will allow the community to determine which will be most valuable in the secondary market.
“The blend of Heavy Metal & Neon Future through the lens of Greg Hildebrandt is nothing short of spectacular. Sprinkle in the iconic Todd McFarlane and his vision of art and we have something memorable for the fans. This collaboration touches on over 70 years of science fiction, fantasy & horror moments.” Matthew Medney, CEO of Heavy Metal Magazine
Since its launch in 2021, Oddkey has been a premiere NFT marketplace and meeting space for creators and collectors within the sci-fi, anime, fantasy, and comic realms. This genre of pop culture has always experienced a next-level fandom – one that is made up of impassioned followers with the desire to connect with one another on their interests. With OddKey, Steve Aoki and Todd McFarlane bring that freedom of expression and desire for comic collectibles into the digital space, offering an escape for members to connect with each other, their favorite creators, and their favorite content as it is developed.
ABOUT Steve Aoki
With a 77 million average monthly reach across all his platforms, 2x GRAMMY nominated music producer, artist, fashion designer, entrepreneur and NFT visionary Steve Aoki is one of the most successful cross-genre artists in the world. His latest forays into the NFT landscape have kept true to his legacy as a futuristic, innovative, against-the-grain mind. From his genesis NFT collection “Dream Catcher” he first launched in 2021 alongside visual artist Antoni Tudisco and “Dominion X” (the first episodic series to launch on the blockchain) to the creation of his NFT membership community A0K1VERSE and this latest collaboration with Neon Future and Heavy Metal, Aoki is steadily gaining traction as one of the most reliable yet boundary-breaking voices in the metaverse.
Web: steveaoki.com/
TW: @steveaoki
IG: @steveaoki
ABOUT OddKey
OddKey is a Solana-based project created by Todd McFarlane and Steve Aoki. It is a premiere NFT marketplace for creators, collectors, and aficionados of original sci-fi, fantasy, and comic inspired digital art and music. The platform provides a solution for comic artists to showcase and sell their original digital artwork freely to their worldwide fanbases, connecting creators directly to their community.
Web: oddkey.com/
TW: @OddKeyNFT
ABOUT Heavy Metal
First published in 1977, Heavy Metal Magazine, the world’s foremost illustrated magazine, explores fantastic and surrealistic worlds, alternate realities, science fiction and thrillers, in the past, present, and future. Writers and illustrators from around the world take you to places you never dreamed existed. Heavy Metal Magazine was the first publisher to bring European legends like Moebius, Enki Bilal, and Pepe Moreno to the U.S. while showcasing non-mainstream American superstars like Richard Corben, Greg Hildebrandt, Vaughn Bode and Frazetta. Heavy Metal Studios, spearheaded by President Tommy Coriale, is developing and producing TV and film content adapted from Heavy Metal’s rich and vast library of original IP. The iconic home of cutting-edge sci-fi, fantasy, and horror stories is moving at warp speed toward the future, so buckle the f*ck up. Heavy Metal’s pages have served as an inspirational epicenter for the likes of Ridley Scott, Guillermo Del Toro, Chris Columbus, Jon Faverau, & more. Put simply, if you’re a fan of pop culture, genre filmmaking, & television, you’re welcome.
With CEO Matthew Medney and an incredible team at the helm, Heavy Metal promises to boldly go where no one has gone before. Explore ancient secrets, forgotten worlds and savage futures…
Web: heavymetal.com/
TW: @HeavyMetalInk
IG: @heavymetal
ABOUT Greg Hildenbrandt
Greg Hildebrandt came to the illustration world alongside his brother Tim in 1959. Together, “The Brothers Hildebrandt” have worked on a wide variety of documentary films and illustrated for textbooks, children’s books, calendars, book covers, posters, comics, advertisements, movie posters, collectables, and trading card games. They launched into international recognition in 1976, when they first illustrated the movie poster for the original Star Wars. The brothers have gone on to work with major clients like Marvel Comics, DC Comics, Franklin Mint, Wizards of the Coast, Batfilms, and Lucas Films. Greg is particularly recognized for “American Beauties,” his series of 1940s-1950s pin-up paintings which he continues to create.