This interview is part of CoinDesk's Culture Week. It has been condensed and lightly edited for clarity. Chris Jacquemin is a speaker at CoinDesk's Consensus festival in April.
Denzel Washington. Ben Affleck. Serena Williams. Tina Fey. Rihanna. These are the types of names that are represented by WME (William Morris Endeavor), an elite talent agency that runs a good chunk of Hollywood.
Founded in 1898, WME has a roster of talent across nearly every branch of culture – film, music, television, comedy, books, art, theater. And in 2021, the firm expanded its scope to include a new vertical: crypto.
The impact of Web3, ultimately, is "going to be very similar to the way that the rise of the internet completely changed humanity," says Chris Jacquemin, head of digital strategy of WME and the partner who led the firm's embrace of Web3.
Under Jacquemin's watch, WME has signed more than 50 Web3 creators, building an eclectic roster that now includes Mack Flavelle (co-founder of Dapper Labs, the company behind NBA Top Shot), AI (artificial-intelligence) artist Claire Silver and pseudonymous NFT artist FEWOCiOUS.
When did you first explore the idea of WME getting into Web3?
It was actually in the fall of 2020. My background is in research, so I really obsess over a lot of consumer trends and behavioral trends. And what I was seeing in 2020 was that everybody's at home during the pandemic and the collecting market exploded. Sneakers, coins, trading cards, stamps, you name it. And everybody was feeling isolated. There was a thirsting for community and connectivity. And, in parallel, crypto was on fire. So it felt like this perfect storm. I stumbled on a data report that suggested that by the end of 2020, there would be roughly $300 million in NFT sales.
How'd you pitch the idea internally, to your colleagues?
I was explaining that, "Much like you've heard me say many times before, technology allows creators to tell stories, using these new platforms and devices and tools. So this is just another canvas for our clients to paint on and to play in." We really came at it from this point of view as an opportunity to tell stories in a different medium and reach a different community.
Smart. But I'm guessing this wasn't always an easy sell. What kind of pushback did you get?
One thing people said was, "Is this kind of a fad? Is this going to be something that goes away?" We had a little bit of that. There was certainly a little bit of, "I don't even understand what we'd be making here. What does this look like as a creative project?" That was a big one. And there were a lot of other issues at the time that are no longer as prevalent, such as the environmental pushback.
How'd you overcome the objections?
I think one of the things that I have a good reputation for is removing a lot of the technical speak. So for NFTs, it's, "Let's just talk about these as digital collectibles." And I would tell them that it's going to be very similar to the way that the rise of the internet completely changed humanity and our access to information on a global scale. The rise of social media allowed for the world's population to connect over common areas of interests. This is another wave of that. So let's think about how it [Web3] complements a lot of the work that we're already doing in these areas: artist fan clubs, merch as collectibles.
How'd you guys jump in?
It's very analogous to how you would put together a television show or a film. So over the course of the first few months in 2021, we began to identify people like Mack Flavelle and FEWOCiOUS. We said, "Okay, we should go sign them and build up a roster to represent them. And this will then help us as we're putting more projects together in this new area."
Interesting. So signing Web3 clients also helps your current clients get into Web3. Smart. What are some of your favorite success stories?
I think a more recent one is bringing Scottie Pippen into the Web3 space. This was met with a really positive reception, and it has done quite well. Orange Comet, who we partnered Scottie with, had a really thoughtful and creative take on the project. Scottie got really excited about the space overall. And also getting Jim Carrey into it. In addition to being a highly successful movie star, he's a painter and is genuinely passionate about his artwork. So we worked with him and partnered with SuperRare (a crypto art and NFT marketplace). I think it was a good example of bringing an artist into the space in the right way.
What advice would you give Web3 creators who are hoping to get signed by an agent? What are you looking for?
What we look for is unique storytelling. And unique is the operative word here, because there are a lot of projects that seem to copy other projects. So we're looking for both creative uniqueness and also strategic uniqueness. What our client Gmoney has been doing with his 9dcc apparel collection – this is highly unique, super innovative and really thoughtful around the community. And if I wasn't representing him and I saw what he was doing, he would absolutely be an obvious target for us to go after.
That's two of us! Thanks Chris, and best of luck going forward.
– Jeff Wilser
@jeffwilser
