The First Mint Podcast

A year ago, I wrote 10x rules for 2022. And two of them were absolutely TERRIBLE. So this year I invited my brother TheReelPhilD to hop on the show and keep me honest as I run through 10x Rules for NFTs in 2023. 

To celebrate the year that was on The First Mint, I’ve put together a short podcast full of memorable clips from some of our best guests.  Featuring: Jess Sloss | Founder of Seed Club Marcus Bianshe | Founder of Rumble Kong League Jayne Peressini | Former GM of Top Shot (I think?) Dave Fedlman | General Manager of NFL ALL DAY Andrew Steinwold | Host of ZimaRed + Angel Investor Mack Flavelle | CEO of Big Head Club + Cofounder of Dapper Labs Jasmine Maietta | Founder of Round21 Scott Melker | Founder of TheWolfofAllStreets Tascha | PhD in Macro Economics Space Cowboy | Twitter Personality

Today’s guest refers to himself as a “FOMO Dragon”. Early to both Cryptokitties and NBA Top Shot, Carlini is no stranger to the volatile market of non fungibles. He joins us on the show to share some shocking tales, like how he sold his punks for Top Shot, and dish a slice of humble pie to no one other than himself.

Imagine playing baseball your entire life, finally making it to the MLB, and retiring after just three seasons. Then imagine being broke for two years, painting every single day in your garage, with an absolute conviction that you could make it as an artist. That's what Micah Johnson did, when he left baseball and went all in on his new found talent. Today, he joins us to chat about life as a creator, a business, an athlete, and a human.

A rare special edition of the show: featuring my ACTUAL brother, TheReelPhilD! On today's episode, we have an open, raw, and candid conversation. We talk about his collecting habits, what's wrong with today's sports NFTs, and what motivates the community to be part of this whole scene. We also ask what its gonna take for the current platforms to survive through to the next phase.

Last week, Disney put the entire Metaverse on notice when they brought back Bob Iger, the CEO who led the acquisitions of Pixar, LucasFilm, and Marvel. Now, we don't know if Bob's return signals similar deals in web3, but we do know that Iger spent the last year advising on GENIES, a digital avatar company. So on today's show, we'll look at 12x different companies in the space - including Disney - and speculate on wether they are BUYERS or SELLERs in the space.

It makes total sense: fantasy sports, but your players come as NFTs. So why aren't more people using the platforms available? And does web3 truly have anything to offer to the sports gambling crowd? The Fantasy Sports industry is set to double in size over the next 5 years, and a big part of that might just be crypto - so on today's show we talk to the experts about the barriers, the opportunities, and the market itself.

The biggest tournament in the world is also the most corrupt organization on the planet. And guess what: the sell NFTs now! On today's show, we look at FIFA's mild swing into crypto, how they've overcome multiple scandals, and more importantly - where they make and spend $7 billion dollars every four years. We welcome Christopher Gaffrey, associate professor at NYU and a specialist on sports governance and urbanization, to dive deep into the workings of this global org.

When Tom Brady retired in February 2022, he announced that he would dedicate all his time to his new NFT platform: Autograph. Designed to sell digital collectibles of top tier athletes like Tiger Woods and Wayne Gretzky, the platform burst out of the gate amidst the NFT boom. But in the doldrums of the bear market, the platform is struggling to keep collectors happy, as promises are broken and Brady spends another season on the field. We dive into the project, its co founders, and talk directly to the community. 

In December 2021, Nike shocked the web3 world when it purchased 2-year old design studio RTFKT. But upon closer inspection, the move makes total sense for both companies as consumers and sneakers hurtle towards the metaverse at an alarming speed. On today's show, we'll look at WHY Nike buys certain companies, and how RTFKT positioned itself to be one of them.