On January 6, 2022, legendary artist Ruby Mazur and multimedia company Cosmic Wire, in partnership with NFT platform Launchpad by Byt, dropped 5,050 AI-generated NFTs based on Mazur’s iconic “Mouth and Tongue” design used on The Rolling Stones’ 1971 “Tumbling Dice” record sleeve. Each of the AI-generated NFTs are based upon the layers of Mazur’s original “Blah, Blah, Blah” painting and varied in both appearance and scarcity in the limited, one-time-only release.
Mazur was diagnosed with terminal brain cancer and given six months to live one year prior to the drop. Since then, he decided he would create his last set of “Mouth and Tongues” with the time he has left and use them to support cancer research and treatment. In honor of that commitment, Mazur and Cosmic Wire proudly announced a new partnership with FCancer, a 501(c)3 nonprofit in the United States and a registered Canadian charity dedicated to improving health outcomes by providing early detection, prevention, and support programs that advance health equity for individuals and communities affected by cancer.
As part of the new partnership, there were four “Super Rare FCancer” generative NFTs added to the “Blah, Blah, Blah” collection with 100% of those proceeds being donated to the FCancer foundation. In addition, a 15% funds from the 5,050 available generative NFT sales, as well as royalties, were donated to support their efforts.
Through months of hard work between all parties, a launch date of January 6th, 2022 which allowed us the time to set a plan in place and enact our full rollout which included media outreach, digital advertising, and a social media and influencer campaign.
With this campaign, we were building a community around a charitable cause while others were using NFT campaigns for quick profits. Because of this, we had to convince buyers that NFT campaigns can be a force for good and that it was more than a “get rich quick” scheme. FCancer was a great partner with us as it allowed us to reach those who would put helping others – in this case those impacted by Cancer – over their own personal gains.
Unfortunately, the day of our launch coincided with the beginning of the Crypto crash of 2022. Many collectors didn’t have the crypto reserves and decided to opt of the purchase at the time, but we were still able to sell over 2,000 NFTs.
One of the most important aspects of an NFT sale is the royalty payment that is built into the smart contract. Essentially, every time an NFT is sold, a portion of the sale is paid as a royalty to whoever is identified in the contract. In this case, we were able to carve out a percentage of every “Mouth and Tongue” sale that will go back to FCancer in perpetuity, cementing Ruby Mazur’s giving and legacy forever.
At the completion of our campaign, we sold just over 2,200 Mouth & Tongue NFTs. In the initial drop and with the secondary royalties, we have raised over $300,000 for FCancer using the Ethereum token. We know this is not the final number and the amount will continue to grow well into the future. All parties involved are thrilled at the level of success we have achieved thus far and are excited to see the continued giveback in the days ahead.
