Binance, the world’s leading
blockchain ecosystem and cryptocurrency infrastructure provider has announced
that London-based, Nigerian musician-artist, NISSI OGULU, has launched ‘Jigsaw
Tribe.’ The exclusive NFT For Good collection was made available on the Binance
NFT marketplace in collaboration with Binance Charity on May 30, 2022.
The digital art series features a collection of unique pieces exploring the
musical heritage of Africa through ancient yet animated instruments, ‘Jigsaw
Tribe’. It explores the different facets of life and music, each represented as
a puzzle piece.
“With ‘Jigsaw Tribe’, my intention is to take you across the continent to
discover hand-crafted musical instruments, in all their colourful glory, that
may not be known to the rest of the world. The pieces also reflect the music
tradition of Africa, with its amazing sounds, in a hyper-contemporary and
animated artistic expression,” says Nissi.
This NFT collection comprises of NFTs with various rarity levels and pricing,
added value utilities include invitations to live events and art exhibitions to
concessions on signed & printed digital art pieces and whitelisting
privileges to future NFT drops.
The exclusive artwork series will be sold in a premium auction on the Binance
NFT Marketplace between May 30th and June 20th, 2022. This is the latest
collaboration for Binance Charity’s NFT For Good Campaign, an initiative
that enables world-renowned creators to convert their art and creativity into
meaningful global action targeting social and humanitarian issues.
As part of this, a percentage of proceeds will go to The Reach, an Ogulu family
initiative that provides 6000 meals a month for underprivileged people in
Nigeria along with other ad hoc community initiatives.
“Binance Charity’s NFT for Good initiative connects creators, their art, and
their cause. Jigsaw Tribe is yet another exciting example of this and it's
beautiful to see the series merging tradition and technology. Having spent many
years working in Africa, the region, the people and their culture hold a
special place in my heart. I’m thrilled we’re able to collaborate with Nissi in
a homage to her heritage.” said Helen Hai, Executive VP of Binance and Head of
Binance Charity.
Born in Port Harcourt, Nigeria, into a highly creative family, Nissi’s older
brother is Burna Boy (dubbed ‘the African Giant’) and her grandfather is
Benson Idonije who was an Afrobeat legend and Fela Kuti’s manager. She
credits entertainment business mogul, Bose Ogulu, her mother, who she describes
as a “powerhouse”, for her and her sibling’s flair for creativity and
innovative thinking. Her sister, Ronami, is also a genius in the world of
fashion and creative strategy.
As an artist, Nissi has worked with a variety of mediums but found her niche in
the world of fine art with her unconventional, contemporarily driven style of
paintings and artistic innovative design. She has further expanded her deep
involvement in the digital realm with her founding of Creele Animation Studios,
which creates black and African content with storytelling through animation,
music, the metaverse and games.
“What excites me is the fact that African music and culture are finally getting
the renown and success they so richly deserve as being integral to global music
and creativity. So, the collection is my artistic take on bringing the continent’s
vibrant music tradition and all-around creative brilliance to the world, this
time in an animated way,” says Nissi.
To participate in this charitable auction in support of the Binance Charity,
traders need to open a cryptocurrency account on binance.com and bid for
the artwork on https://www.binance.com/en/nft between 30 May 2022
(12:00pm CAT) and end on 20 June 2022 (12:00pm CAT). Trades will be
accepted in BNB, the cryptocurrency coin that powers the Binance
ecosystem.
YouTube Video
On May 25, 2022, Nissi joined Helen Hai for a live ‘Binance Charity Chats’ on
Binance YouTube, discussing her eagerly anticipated NFT For Good drop.
Watch HERE
Art Collection includes:
1. AN AFRICAN PLAYGROUND
2. GAN GAN
3. GRIOT
4. HAMMAR
5. MAMA CHIVOTI
6. NZUMARI
7. SWEET TAMBOURINE
8. ZULU HORN
9. TO MY FANS
1. An African Playground: The conga, aka tumbadora, is a tall, narrow,
single-headed drum from Cuba. Although the exact origins of the conga
drum are unknown, researchers agree that it was developed by Cuban people of
African descent during the late 19th century or early 20th century. Its
ancestors are thought to be the yuka and makuta (of Bantu origin) and the bembé
drums (of Yoruba origin). Congas were originally used in Afro-Cuban music
genres such as conga (hence their name) and rumba, where each drummer would
play a single drum. Congas have become a popular instrument in many forms of
Latin music such as son (when played by conjuntos), descarga, Afro-Cuban jazz,
salsa, songo, merengue, and Latin rock.
2. “Gan Gan”: An instrument in the percussion family that originates from West
Africa. This hourglass-shaped drum can be traced back to the olden days and is
known by a variety of names including the gangan in Yoruba and doodo in
Songhai. They are referred to as "talking drums" because they are
able to be tuned to mimic the sound of human speech in terms of tone and accent
such as emotion.
3. GRIOT: A griot is a West African storyteller, singer, musician, and oral
historian. They train to excel as orators, lyricists, and musicians. The griot
keeps records of all the births, deaths, and marriages through the village or
family generations. Griots today live in many parts of West Africa and are
present among the Mande peoples (Mandinka or Malinké, Bambara, etc.), Hausa,
Songhai, Tukulóor, Wolof, Serer, Mossi, Dagomba, and many other smaller groups.
In addition to being singers and social commentators, griots are often skilled
instrumentalists. Their instruments include the kora, the khalam (or xalam),
the goje (or n'ko in the Mandinka language), the balafon, the junjung, and the
ngoni.
4. HAMMAR: This horn of the Hamar tribe of Ethiopia is usually played at the
jumping ceremonies where the women and girls get into a frenzy through their
dance, song, and horn blowing as their traditional ritual of strength is being
performed.
5. MAMA CHIVOTI: This instrument is the only one of its kind found in Kenya. It
is longer than most wind or string instruments, made from bamboo, and is
similar to a flute with six holes. It is used mostly as a mellow outro
instrument in a musical routine.
6. NZumari: The Zumari instrument also known as Nzumari of the eastern African
coast, South Somalia is a conical double reed of wood or horn and metal having
four to six finger holes. In East Africa, the spread of the cone oboe likely
started from the island of Lamu and some ethnic groups belonging to the
Mijikenda on the Kenyan coast.
7. SWEET TAMBOURINE: A musical instrument in the percussion family consisting
of a frame (wood or plastic) with metal jingles referred to as “zills”. The
origin of the tambourine is unknown, but it appears in historical writings as
early as 1700 BC and was used by ancient musicians in West Africa, the Middle
East, Turkey, Greece, and India. Tambourines were also used in ancient Egypt.
8. ZULU HORN: An African horn trumpet may be made from the horn of most any
animal, such as elephant horns used by the Akan people of Ghana (crafted before
legal bans on the use of ivory) or a cow horn, as in the “side-blow” Ugandan
trumpet known as the eng’ombe. A traditional African horn trumpet may appear
more in ceremonial or ritual music than in popular music. Zulu warriors blow
antelope horns known as kudu horn.
9. TO MY FANS: A special NFT love letter to Nissi's fans, emphasizing her
journey from child to adulthood and the pieces of the puzzle - the inspirations
in her life - which have made her the artist and musician she is today.
Source: Peacefmonline.com/Ghana