Crypto has success stories, crypto has failures, and crypto is volatile — well-known narratives about the industry. Not everyone who puts skin in the game experiences loss; some have gains, while for some, misfortune unfolds on their crypto journey.
This is the story of musician Jonathan Mann, who turned his songs into NFTs, gained $3 million selling them, but unfortunately faced a huge loss due to a crypto crash and tax, and finally, what? His creative brain tempted him to display the ordeal through a song!
Riding high, then crashing hard: How did Jonathan Mann start earning millions in NFTs?
The year 2021 welcomed Jonathan Mann, a musician and NFT artist behind the ‘Song A Day’ project, to the world of crypto. Mann started his brilliant ‘Song A Day’ project in 2009, with the idea of one new original song every single day. His great passion for earning money from music through NFTs and crypto led him to turn his entire song catalogue into NFTs.
The artist made a significant $3 million in Ethereum (ETH)! But, how? Mann sold 3,700 songs for $800 each, and made thriving millions — to the moon! But little did Jonathan Mann know about the unforeseen financial catastrophe.
The sad reason behind the happy story
Remember the 2022 crypto mishap? An unforgettable moment for many million crypto nerds! Coupled with several other factors, the significant reason for the crypto collapse is due to Terraform Labs’ nosedive, including its stablecoin TerraUSD and sister coin, Luna.
This particular shock wave hit several investors and enthusiasts, and Jonathan Mann was not an exception.
Wait, not this incident alone made him suffer; as he earned $3 million, the US Internal Revenue Service (IRS) imposed a tax bill, another nightmare! Though the value of ETH collapsed due to the Terra crash, Mann had to pay taxes based on the original value of the coin at the time he received it. Despite the financial nihilism, the musician’s pen did not go dry; he started writing songs and selling them as NFTs.
The artist turns misfortune into a musical tale
Overcoming the erratic and ill-fated experience, Jonathan Mann had a brainwave. His audacity made him not simply sit and grieve, but converted his crypto nightmare into a video song.
Talking about this unique idea on X, Mann said that the story behind the song ended in March 2024, when he sold his Autoglyph and paid a $1.1 million tax bill. “The day after I paid, I began writing the song. I’ve worked on it on & off for the past year and a half”, added Jonathan Mann.
How does this matter?
The story of Jonathan Mann signals how crypto investors will have to face challenges in the constantly evolving and changing crypto landscape. The crypto market is uncertain; success could come after failure, and failure could emerge after success, even both can come hand-in-hand! That’s crypto.
If you are ready to take risks, you have to face crypto market dips, but remember, fruitful opportunities also arise as a permanent income for you.
