Five years ago, there was a lot of hype behind non-fungible tokens, digital works of art purchased with cryptocurrencies and stored on blockchains. However, we don’t hear much about NFTs these days, and those who bought them from Steve Aoki were disappointed.
Aoki, who got his start booking punk shows and became a world-famous DJ and cake thrower, is named in the class action lawsuit along with DraftKings co-founder Matthew Kalish. Law.com report. The complaint alleges that Aoki and Kalish used their influence on social media to promote the now-defunct Metazoo NFT without disclosing that they were receiving compensation. Plaintiffs in the lawsuit, led by Evan Berger, claim losses in the tens of millions of dollars.
Founded in 2000, Metazoo Games LLC started selling tabletop collectible card games, but has moved on to selling skateboards, clothing, and NFTs. At its peak, a set of all 10 versions of the Metazoocoin NFT was trading for 20 Ethereum (equivalent to about $80,000 at the time). Berger said he was influenced by Aoki and Kalish’s promotions and bought and held at least 26 NFTs, believing they would increase in value. According to his lawsuit, the tokens are currently worthless.
“There are certain rules in place to protect consumers, and it’s very important that influencers know and understand those rules, because they are requirements, not suggestions,” Berger told Law.com. “There are currently a number of class action lawsuits being filed against viable companies where similar things have happened.”
Although he has not commented on the lawsuit, Aoki became an equity partner at MetaZoo in 2021. The following year, Aoki’s collectible physical card series was produced. Hero Quest: Genesis album. Coincidentally, HiROQUEST 3: Paragon Remix Released on Friday, that cursed Hoobastank remix made it onto the tracklist. (the “for asians” he revealed on Stereogum’s Instagram. ) in 2022Aoki said that he has made more money from NFTs than he has made in music in 10 years.
By the way, Aoki was also sued for cake throwing.