Binance, the world’s leading blockchain ecosystem and cryptocurrency infrastructure provider has announced that Beninese-American Hollywood star and model, Djimon Honsou and famous Nigerian painter, LÁOLÚ will be exhibiting their digital artist series, ‘Time To Heal’, on the Binance NFT Marketplace.
This collaboration is for Binance Charity’s NFT For Good Campaign, which enables creators to convert their art and creativity into meaningful global action targeting social and humanitarian issues.
Djimon Hounsou who portrayed Korath the Pursuer in Marvel blockbuster movies, Guardians of the Galaxy and Captain Marvel, will be body painted by LÁOLÚ, the Nigerian artist behind the body art in Beyoncé’s Grammy award-winning Lemonade. This photo will then be projected on a physical canvas and subsequently converted to a digital NFT version.
The NFT collection, consisting of five unique portraits, will launch on November 10, 2021 and proceeds will be shared between the artists and the Djimon Hounsou Foundation through the Binance Charity. “I feel this compelling need, this inherent obligation to give back to my continent, to my people, and to champion the idea of reconciliation and reconnection,” says Djimon.
LÁOLÚ added: “There is so much we can do when we come together. Through my work, I’ve always sought to connect the world to my Yoruba roots. With this project, we’re doing that on a large scale by sharing not only our own stories but that of the diaspora within the digital landscape.”
On November 9, 2021, Djimon and LÁOLÚ will also join Binance for a live ‘Ask Me Anything’ chat on Binance YouTube, discussing NFTs, their entrance into the crypto and blockchain space and how NFTs can impact African artists.
Emmanuel Babalola, Director at Binance Africa, said: “We are especially excited to host creators of African descent as we see the profound opportunity NFTs and the blockchain bring to the entire continent. As NFTs transform the digital art world, it is important that African creators are provided an even larger platform with optimal solutions to reach a more global audience.”
“Nearly four times as many people live in modern-day slavery than during the Transatlantic Slave Trade. We know blockchain is a powerful tool that can be used to help tackle complex and horrific social issues – such as this – from tackling corruption to increasing transparency to promoting financial freedom to providing new fundraising streams such as the recent NFT boom. Cross-industry collaborations such as this one between Djimon, his foundation, Láolú and Binance are essential to help harness this potential and drive forward blockchain for good,” comments Helen Hai, Head of Binance Charity and Binance NFT.
Binance NFT is an established brand within the crypto community. In just a little over a month after its debut, Binance NFT became one of the fastest-growing NFT platforms in the world, generating 25 million BUSD in sales, selling over 300,000 mystery boxes and onboarding 400 creators globally. Today, Binance NFT has sold over 900,000 mystery boxes and earned 103+ million BUSD in sales in total since launch.
The Binance NFT Marketplace shares the same account system as Binance.com. Existing Binance users are able to access the NFT marketplace and trade with their current Binance accounts. New users simply have to register on Binance.com to create or trade on the Binance NFT platform. Binance NFT has also added multi-chain support for NFT deposits and withdrawals. Users can now transfer their NFTs to and from Binance Smart Chain and Ethereum networks with ease.
Binance
Binance is the world’s leading blockchain ecosystem and cryptocurrency infrastructure provider with a financial product suite that includes the largest digital asset exchange by volume. Trusted by millions worldwide, the Binance platform is dedicated to increasing the freedom of money for users, and features an unmatched portfolio of crypto products and offerings, including: trading and finance, education, data and research, social good, investment and incubation, decentralization and infrastructure solutions, and more.
Binance NFT Marketplace
Binance NFT Marketplace offers an open market for artists, creators, crypto enthusiasts, NFT collectors and creative fans around the world with the best liquidity and minimal fees. Consisting of two parts, premium events and a trading marketplace, Binance NFT features valuable collectibles and an easily accessible trading market for all of its users.
Binance Charity
Binance Charity is a non-profit organization dedicated to the advancement of blockchain-enabled philanthropy towards achieving global sustainable development. Binance Charity aims to transfer philanthropy by developing a 100% transparent donation platform based on blockchain to build a future where technology innovation is used to end all forms of poverty and inequality, advance sustainable development and ensure that no one is left behind. To date, Binance Charity has supported over 1 million end beneficiaries through various projects.
Djimon Hounsou Foundation
The Djimon Hounsou Foundation is a non-profit based in California whose mission is to strengthen Africa’s intergenerational identity and self-awareness by reconnecting the Peoples of the African Diaspora with their motherland and celebrating ‘Unity in Diversity’ and combat modern-day slavery & human trafficking to stop exploitation, loss of freedom, and identity, and educate about the causes, stakes and consequences of slavery.
LÁOLÚ
A Nigerian bred, Brooklyn based performance and visual artist, singer, songwriter, musician, human rights lawyer, and activist. LÁOLÚ has worked with those such as Taraji P. Henson, Lupita Nyongo, Alicia Keys, Swizz Beats, Danielle Brooks, and has had his Sacred Art of the Ori body ritual featured on Beyoncé’s 2016 Grammy award-winning “Lemonade”.
LÁOLÚ has graced the covers of The New York Times alongside having features in The Fader, Vogue, Vice, CNN, BBC, and more. His ever-growing list of collaborations currently include those such as Apple, Facebook, Nike, Starbucks, Belvedere, Bvlgari, TED, and many more.
Djimon Hounsou
Born in Benin, West Africa, Djimon Hounsou moved to Paris at the age of 13 to pursue a Western education. He has received Academy Award nominations for his work in Ed Zwick’s Blood Diamond (2006) and Jim Sheridan’s In America (2002). He most recently appeared in John Krasinski’s A Quiet Place 2 (2021) and co-stars later this year in Matthew Vaughn’s The King’s Man.
Hounsou’s film credits include Charlie’s Angels (2019), Shazam! (2018), Captain Marvel (2019), Guardians of the Galaxy (2014), King Arthur: The Legend of the Sword (2017), The Legend of Tarzan (2016), How to Train Your Dragon 2 (2014) and lots more. He was also discovered by designer Thierry Mugler and subsequently modelled for and appeared in several iconic music videos for Herb Ritts and David Fincher.
Djimon Hounsou
LÁOLÚ
