SnoopDogg is selling digital collectibles for $12 million on Telegram, the CEO said

According to CEO Pavel Durov, American rapper and record producer Snoop Dogg launched the first celebrity digital gift on Telegram on Wednesday, selling nearly 1 million collectibles in just 30 minutes, netting $12 million. Durov wrote on his official Telegram channel: "SnoopDogg's digital collectibles on Telegram sold out in just 30 minutes today, with sales reaching $12 million." "Nearly 1 million unique NFTs, inspired by Snoop's iconic style, sold out in record time." These collectibles initially appeared to be sold and registered internally on Telegram and were minted via the TON blockchain at the end of July. "Blockchain minting and the secondary market will go live in 21 days. It's going to be crazy," Durov added. Entertainment and celebrity news outlet TMZ was the first to report this news. Telegram and the TON blockchain are closely related, with TON originally developed by Telegram's team but handed over to an open-source community due to legal pressures. Nevertheless, TON now serves as the foundational blockchain supporting Telegram's on-chain functionalities, including collectibles, web3 usernames, and payment services for its claimed 1 billion users. Before the sale, Snoop Dogg posted on his official Telegram channel, "@durov time to drop it like it's hot," quoting one of his most famous lines. He even released a short "Gifts" music video on his official YouTube channel to celebrate the launch. The sale included vintage cars, loot bags, digital dogs, and cannabis-themed collectibles. However, this is not Snoop's first foray into the NFTs and crypto assets space; he has been a prominent figure in the field for over a decade, accepting Bitcoin for album purchases as early as 2013. He has amassed a $17 million NFT collection under the pseudonym "Cozomo de' Medici," becoming a notable digital art collector. He also launched "Snoopverse" in The Sandbox metaverse, releasing "The Doggies" NFT series, and even performed alongside Eminem with their Bored Ape avatars at the 2022 MTV Video Music Awards. Snoop's recent sales are somewhat unconventional in the NFT market, which has suffered significant losses since its peak in 2021 and has failed to recover strongly from the 2022 bear market like other areas of the crypto assets space.