3LAU Wipes Out Artist's Student Loan Debt With Cryptocurrency
Distressed by accumulating student loan debt, music producer and visual creative director Bdice reached out to 3LAU for feedback on an idea. What happened next changed the trajectory of his life forever.
A multi-faceted creative, Bdice understood well the need to retain ownership of his work. He had been well versed in the possibilities of Web3 and was actively exploring opportunities to monetize his work.
Unfortunately, Bdice tells EDM.com, he had found himself in dire straits from a financial standpoint. He'd gone through Audio Engineering & Music Production school, but the aftermath left him six figures in debt. Despite monthly payments, the interest continued to eat away his progress. He had spent $100,000 over 10 years in interest payments alone.
Nonetheless, Bdice was persistent, a quality best exemplified by his project "Daily 16's." During his time in school from 2011 to 2012, he recorded a song and video every day for 365 days straight, and posted them to his YouTube channel. By the end of the experiment, he'd amassed 10,000 subscribers. Reflecting on the project, Bdice set out to create a Web3-based collection out of his Daily 16's, but he was looking for a second opinion.
Luckily, he had an opportunity to connect with 3LAU, one one of the most notable power-players in blockchain tech. In an open Twitter space, OnChainTV, Bdice shared his story and idea with the "Better With You" producer.
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What happened next, Bdice could have never expected.
"We’ll fix it right now, what was the number you needed," 3LAU asked.
The amount he needed was 20.5 Ethereum ($ETH), around $80,000 at the time of writing. But Bdice was shocked and could hardly believe when the exact amount he'd requested wound up in his wallet. He took to Twitter to announce what had happened, and even then he was left speechless at the generosity.
The gesture has given Bdice new found flexibility to focus on his personal creative endeavors. He says one takeaway from the experience is to spotlight the generosity of the Web3 community.
"To me, 3LAU’s gesture was a direct reflection of one of the core goals in Web3, to level the playing field for creatives," he tells EDM.com.
