NorCal and Shill

Vasia - Builder

• NorCal Guy • Season 1 • Episode 166

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Ever wondered how a seemingly ordinary educator became a cornerstone in the burgeoning world of NFTs and digital art? Vasia, the visionary behind Moments Agency, takes us on her extraordinary journey from the classroom to the forefront of the Web3 revolution. She shares her experiences of co-founding the Crypt Gallery and how she’s been instrumental in connecting mainstream audiences with the digital art scene. Discover her perspectives on the professional nuances of the Web3 environment, breaking down the "Wagmi" mentality, and her aspirations that extend beyond the hustle and bustle of New York City.

Prepare to be inspired as we delve into the transformative potential of digital art and its future. Vasia opens up about her initial skepticism and eventual embrace of this new frontier, emphasizing the significance of community and brand involvement for widespread adoption. Learn how she is pioneering initiatives to foster genuine connections and support artists in the creative space. Through personal anecdotes and strategic insights, Vasia illustrates the evolution of the NFT ecosystem and the importance of thoughtful engagement for sustained growth.

Join us for an exciting exploration of upcoming collaborations and the interplay between Web2 and Web3 brands. As Vasia paints a vivid picture of the vibrant, community-driven future of digital art. We also discuss the innovative idea behind "Moments, the Podcast," focusing on viral tweets and their implications in the decentralized world. Whether you're an avid NFT collector or just curious about the digital art landscape, this episode offers an engaging blend of stories and insights that you won't want to miss.

https://x.com/vasiamakris

https://x.com/moments_agency_

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Intro:

Who is this? Who is this guy? Norcal guy. Norcal guy. Norcal guy. Norcal guy. Norcal guy. Norcal and chill podcast. It's chill time. Norcal and chill podcast. What the sh? What the sh? Norcal and chill podcast. It's chill time, norcal and Shill Podcast. What the sh what the sh-? Norcal and Shill Podcast. So it's Shill time, norcal and Shill Podcast. What the sh what the sh-. Welcome to another exciting episode of NorCal and Shill.

Intro:

Today we're thrilled to have Vasia, the founder of Moments Agency, join us. Despite her nerves, she's eager to dive into her journey from an educator during the pandemic to a pivotal figure in the NFT and digital art space. In this episode, vasya opens up about her transition from the education sector to the fascinating world of NFTs, how hosting events in hospitality spaces helped bridge the gap between digital art and mainstream audiences, and her evolving engagement with art collection. She also shares her insights on the endless possibilities of Web3, her skepticism towards the Wagme mentality and the crucial role of professionalism in the industry. Vasya discusses her vision for the future, including a potential move from New York to a more remote, serene location, her aspiration to homeschool her future children and her admiration for lifestyles akin to Martha Stewart's. We also delve into her current collaborations, such as organizing exclusive art events and co-hosting Moments.

Intro:

The podcast. Join us as we explore Vasia's experiences, her thoughts on fostering brand involvement in Web3 for mass adoption and her enthusiasm for the future of digital art. Whether you're a seasoned collector or new to the world of NFTs, this episode promises a rich blend of personal anecdotes and industry insights. Everybody, please, welcome Vasya.

NorCal Guy:

Hey, vasya, welcome to the podcast. How are you doing today?

Vasia:

I'm great. Thanks for having me on. I'm super excited to be here and have a good conversation.

NorCal Guy:

Yeah, I'm looking forward to it. You know it's funny, as we were chatting before this started and I was like, hey, I kind of know who you are-ish, because I remember seeing you around the Crypt Gallery, but I had no idea how you were connected. And so we we resolved all these questions about why you were around and you're a co-founder of the Crypt Gallery yes, I am.

Vasia:

I feel terrible because I didn't even remember meeting you but apparently you've been, but apparently you've been to a few of the events, so thank you for supporting um. I am co-founder um, yeah yeah, it was great.

NorCal Guy:

I love the, I love the crypt gallery, I enjoyed the events, the events that you guys have had there and, um, yeah to future events there, even though I know, um, it's under a different management these days.

Vasia:

Well, hyatt bought the hotel. Okay, in terms of Crypt, yeah, tommy's still there and King of Midtown's rocking it. But we did have some pretty banger events right before I left. That I am super grateful for. I think one of the biggest events that we had thrown last was the last New York event and I mean we had some pretty killer ones and in LA we had Cube show up at one of them. Ice Cube came and, yeah, a bunch of different artists. Yeah, it was a lot of fun.

Vasia:

Honestly, throwing those events was. I mean, I'm sure you guys had a bunch of fun attending but seeing it come together, seeing the magic come together and and bringing so many different people from all over. I mean you mentioned, like we were talking about trevor. Trevor jones came up. Like that was the first time a lot of people got to meet him in person and and, um, it being in a hotel like I, it was like a giant I don't know hang out and sleep over, like everyone was on property all night. So, yeah, I'm really grateful for the experiences and everything I learned, kind of working and and building out crypt gallery, tommy.

NorCal Guy:

Yeah, no, it was great, A great endeavor you were a part of, for sure. So I guess, jumping right in, what were your first thoughts when you heard about NFTs and crypto art?

Vasia:

Well, yeah, I mean, crypt Gallery was kind of my introduction and Tommy was a friend of mine who was collecting NFTs during the lockdown and I had no clue what NFTs were and I saw this guy spending real money on these digital. You know, I didn't understand it at all, but I knew Tommy wasn't stupid. I mean, we always talked about investing in real estate and crypto. So I just was like Tommy, tell me again, like I don't get it, I don't get it, I don't get it. And he used the metaverse as an example. I used to be an educator. I used to be a teacher, so I taught elementary school, yeah, and at the time we were teaching during COVID, I mean, kids were remote and it was a huge obstacle and the fact that, hypothetically, kids could pick up these goggles, put them on and all of a sudden be in my classroom, it would have been a game changer. So I didn't love the concept, but I was like, ok, tell me more, tell me more. And then I kind of fell down that rabbit hole and again, just watching him interact with people and watching him collect is where I learned a lot. I learned a lot from Tommy and he had the whole concept of bringing it into an in-person location. As we were reopening and and you know, wanting to, at the end of the day, protect his investment, you had to bring it into an in-person location Like we wanted. We were reopening, people wanted to be out, not in front of their computers, and what better location than hospitality? Because it's like the epicenter of nightlife, restaurants, people coming in for business, but also from vacations, from all over the world, and it was just the 24 hours, the fact that we didn't need to have a staff member there, and it just brought so much attention to digital art that normally these people would never go online and look for it. So I think the concept was amazing and he mentioned it to me and I thought it was awesome and I was like dude and I was like dude. I see it, I see the vision.

Vasia:

It was toward the end of the school year. I did have a bit of background in production, so it kind of just fit and Tommy knew me, he knew how I hustled and so, yeah, he pretty much asked me if I'd be down and you know a lot of it was making it up as it kind of came along, but it was within that same month. Essentially, we were asked by Dream to go out to LA because both of us are New York based. New York was still shut down and LA had reopened and they had the LA art show, and so they called us up and they were like you're not opening in New York, you're going to open in LA, you're going to open in three weeks. And so oh, wow, yeah, it was insane, but it was. It was awesome just seeing it all come together and very grateful that you know we got the amount of love that we did get and that that's it.

Vasia:

That was my intro to web3. I mean, I had gotten my master's that may. I was the director of the esl department, so I was head of, like I was working with kids learning english, um, and I put in my resignation that august, so I've never looked back yeah, that's amazing it's cool yeah so did you collect art or anything else before you got into web3?

Vasia:

no at all and it was such a foreign concept like even baseball cards and all that, like I. Still it took me a long time to kind of get the culture and and the drive behind it. Um, I've learned, obviously, a lot along the way because of the space in the industry and um it's, it's super interesting that type of culture, but now I never collected anything.

NorCal Guy:

I mean it looks like you got some stuff on the wall behind you these days started I started collecting. Yes, so what are the best things about web three today?

Vasia:

I feel like one of the the silver lining, I guess, of just time passing by. I think there was a much needed correction and maturity that needed to happen. I will never understand the whole wag me concept, like that never made sense to me, as you know, as much as it blew up. Like, honestly, that's not realistic, like we can't all make it in that aspect. So I think a lot of the expectations needed to change and unfortunately, like I'm not saying in a good way, we all miss the bull market.

Vasia:

But I think the best thing about today is that there was a much needed filter system and the wrong characters have left and exited and the right people that are here to build because they have a long-term vision are still here. So you know the silver lining of everything. I think it's just you know what makes it. What makes it exciting is also the fact that I think there's an endless amount of possibilities and we're still early in many aspects, like the, the future of the space. There's so many things that can can happen and I think there's still a lot of opportunity here.

NorCal Guy:

So right for sure now. You might have interesting view on this, on where you see digital art in five years and do you have any concerns as that expands?

Vasia:

yeah, I um, I definitely want to see more brands involved, I think, in the space, in the industry, and we talked a little bit about it before. I mean, I think that's what is going to to create mass adoption and more people using the technology behind the scenes. And I want to see art at the forefront of that, and it's not about people, you know, setting up wallets and crypto and all the tech stuff. It's really about art and all of the tech stuff is behind the scenes, and that's really, I think, how we're going to bring in a mass audience and help expand the industry. My only concerns with, like, the growth component is, you know, the security obviously is something that has a long way to go education and making sure people are educated the right way. And I think, another huge thing that's not talked about as much as really the leadership of the space, like the leaders, the people that get cemented in as leaders today, are going to be leading this industry 10, 15, 20 years from now.

Vasia:

And what I loved about web three in the beginning, when I first entered it, was the fact that it was like a disruption of society Like we have in the real world. We have our influencers, our Instagram influencers and whatever, and the stereotypical and I'll bring it back to females like the stereotypical Instagram female like influencer, like nothing. I hate more. To be honest with you and I think it. It really I'm being honest. It's a lot of like rotten society. That's not what I'm about, and I think that it's disturbing when our children are looking up to those individuals as role models, right, like it's so, so disturbing. And web3 was this introduction, like back in 2021, when celebrities were trying to do things, and it was like it doesn't matter who you are, it matters the quality that you bring to the table, it matters your engagement, your interactions Like it was such a breath of fresh air where I was like, oh wow, we actually have a shot to disrupt society and like, change it up and change the narrative, and so I really loved that about NFTs and the community.

Vasia:

I don't think we are. I think we're kind of I don't know. I think the leadership is really important, whoever we choose to follow. I'm not about the hype trains is what I'm trying to say. I think it's really about picking quality individuals and positioning them in, you know, in those leadership roles, because those are the people that are going to be cemented there and it's going to be very difficult to change it down the line. So I think the next, you know few years really are going to dictate the direction of the space.

NorCal Guy:

For sure, sure, and I like how you put that. It's a good thought on that.

Vasia:

Thanks.

NorCal Guy:

Is there anything you'd like to see more of in the web3 space?

Vasia:

yeah, professionalism oh my god, let me elaborate. Yeah, definitely, um, what I mean by that outside of professionalism? Like working with each other. Fine, like I can do handshake agreements if I trust you enough. That's not necessarily the only like component of professionalism. I think it's important that we pay attention that, like people are watching from the outside and I get it like it's a d-gen culture, but it can't always be super d-gen culture. Like we do need to execute at a higher level sometimes. We do need to be mindful that, like other people are watching and they're debating if they should enter this ecosystem, and so if everything is too much of a degen or crypto bro culture or just not executed, like even events in production, like if some of these aren't gonna get better in terms of their execution, like it's gonna be a problem, like we're not gonna be taken seriously. So I think professionalism needs to be considered in a lot of moments, to be honest that's fair.

NorCal Guy:

That's very fair. Um, I guess this is an interesting thought. Um, so artists, how you know there's they have one of one's additions and supply. Do you have any thoughts on how potentially someone could use it additions and one-on-ones and like supply versus each other? How they should work together?

Vasia:

Yeah, I think it's an interesting topic. I'm sure people will disagree, but I do think that, like it's okay to do all, like it's okay to mix it up, it's okay to do your one of ones, your additions, your open additions, if it's used strategically, if it's done the right way and if there's a reason behind it. And I'm going to reference Trevor Jones Like I might sound like a groupie, but I think he's a great example of like he did an open edition. I think it was last year, the King's Coronation, and he had a physical painting and then he had done it as an open edition in collaboration with the newspaper there and there was a lot of press around it and it was just meant to commemorate a historic moment, right. And I literally got a text from my cousin who lives in London and she's like hey boss, this NFT thing. And she's like Look it's here, like it's a free NFT. He had it published. It was published in the newspaper. You could scan it with your phone, so there was an AR overlay, so now the picture came to life, they got to see the animation and then all you had to do was go on Nifty Gateway email and credit card. So you're online shopping. There's no wallet or crypto, there's no friction points, and you got to claim a free piece of art and that was someone's onboard into NFTs and they did thousands of these thousands of new wallets because of Trevor's piece and that was a free, open edition edition.

Vasia:

So because of, like, how he released it and the meaning behind it, I think it makes perfect sense. He's also one of one artists, but I don't think it damages his supply. I don't think it does damage to his career reputation. If it's done the right way, I think it. I think it totally works and, honestly, I don't think. Every time I talk to people, a lot of them I love asking, like, what was your introduction to NFTs or what was maybe the first one you purchased? And so many people go back to Trevor and his Bitcoin Angel Open Edition on Nifty. So he's onboarded a bunch of people through these types of opportunities. So, honestly, I mean I'm totally open to all different types of mechanics, as long as it makes sense.

NorCal Guy:

Right, right For sure. So that's, there's some. I didn't realize some of what he did with that. That was really interesting, thank you. Um what is the best piece of advice you have been given, or do you have like kind of a mantra that kind of runs in your head?

Vasia:

Yeah, I think this is my favorite question that you had on that list. I'm a big, I used to be a teacher, so I was into the inspirational quotes and all that.

Vasia:

But, I think a good mantra, one that's like I continue to use, but especially moments of like I was just so overwhelmed and lost and like nothing's working out and you feel so discouraged it goes I give up to the divine that which I can no longer carry on my own. And I'm I'm Greek, I'm Greek Orthodox, I am religious, but I think it applies regardless of people's religious or spiritual kind of backgrounds. It's just the fact of like having faith, and how long, like how long of a way having faith can go. It can carry you so much. And actually we were talking about the gallery like the first time I heard this I was driving home.

Vasia:

It was the week we were opening with super rare, with Chevy and Corvette. It was our opening week. That gallery was built in two weeks. Like it was a last minute phone call. It was a bunch of things coming together. I was like, so you know, dealing with a bunch of fires behind the scenes and I'm like nothing's working out. We're opening in a few days, like, and it just I heard that on a podcast and I said it out loud and I literally just like felt the weight getting lifted and I just started crying and I was like oh my God, like that's it. You just have to have faith that it's all going to come together and in a lot of moments I think that's all you can do Just keep having faith and believing in yourself and kind of let the universe work the rest out for you.

NorCal Guy:

I like that Very, very true. Now, if you could live anywhere, where would you live, and why?

Vasia:

Yeah, I've been thinking about this cause. I do want to relocate. New York is not the spot for me. Yeah, I'm the type that I definitely ideally want a bunch of land in the middle of nowhere. I've been thinking Tennessee maybe, but it's landlocked. I don't know.

NorCal Guy:

I'm on the fence but I just want I do like the ocean.

Vasia:

I'm Greek, okay, fair. But I do definitely want like a lot of space away from a city, like close enough to a city, but not in a city, and just disconnecting. And you know I don't have kids, I don't have a family yet, but you know, when that time comes I'm like going to be homeschooling and like traveling the world, like that's my goal, yeah, and just unplugging from the rest of the world sometimes. And yeah, I'm like the martha stewart. Do you know where martha stewart lives? Like she has her own, like I don't want to call it a compound, an estate that's the word martha stewart has an estate and it's all just like.

Vasia:

So you know you your garden, you got your people working with the animals but it's all, like you know, detached from the city life. I think that's what I'm trying to say no.

NorCal Guy:

I feel that. I feel that we are homeschooling our kids.

Vasia:

Oh, amazing and we love it.

NorCal Guy:

It's like the best thing we ever decided to do. I mean, we had them in preschool for a couple of years before kindergarten and as kindergarten approached, and we're like now we're going to do homeschool and we love it. It's so much fun.

Vasia:

I love it. I think it's become more of a trend now. I didn't know this, but I was just in Europe, like my family's. In Greece, it's illegal to freaking homeschool your kids. I found that crazy. I know they don't do it there and, um, I love that. It's becoming more of a trend now for various reasons. I think parents are starting to get into it. But, yeah, that's awesome.

NorCal Guy:

Yeah, no, it is awesome. So if you were an animal, what would you be and why?

Vasia:

Tiger.

NorCal Guy:

Oh, okay.

Vasia:

Yeah, I think they're baby. Tigers are adorable, but no, a tiger Cause. It's um tiger Cause. It's like, fearless, like, but also very majestic at the same time, I think um, yeah, just always.

NorCal Guy:

They've always been my favorite animal, so they are a beast of an animal, that is for sure. Do you have a favorite movie quote or a song lyric?

Vasia:

yeah, I have to think about this one. Um, I'm not big on movie quotes like I'm terrible at them, but inspired by web 3, I think the line I'm gonna have to go with is tom cruise. He used the. Uh, show me the money line because, I think, yeah, I don't even think I need to respond to why, but yeah, show me. The money has been a resonating like yeah theme the last few years for sure.

NorCal Guy:

So this one's gonna be a tough one if you could commission a piece and have two artists collaborate on it. Which two artists would it be?

Vasia:

yeah, this was definitely tough. Um, okay, trevor Jones, I promise you, I'm not a groupie, but definitely Trevor Jones. Trevor Jones and Patrick Amidon.

NorCal Guy:

Oh, okay.

Vasia:

Yeah, I think they're just obviously very different. So I'm very curious what it would look like at the end. So I'm very curious what it would look like at the end. But both of them you know the digital and physical components and disruptive. I think both of them are kind of always pushing the boundaries and taking a bad approach. So I thought it'd be interesting and I also have seen them together in person IRL and just you know the chemistry that they have. I think it would be an interesting collab. I have no clue what it would look like, but that's fair, that's fair.

Vasia:

Thanks.

NorCal Guy:

What is one interesting fact about you that people might not be aware of? I know you mentioned that you were a teacher, and that could be it, cause I had no idea, I would never, would've thought that.

Vasia:

Yeah, no, um. Another fun fact is I have a twin sister.

NorCal Guy:

I mean not that I know you, but I didn't expect that either.

Vasia:

Yeah, no, she's awesome. She actually helped at some point while we were opening the New York location. Oh yeah, she's been a homie Even in LA what am I saying, calling her up last minute? I need help. Her faking COVID jumping, jumping on a plane coming to la and getting out of, like work and stuff, just to help us out. She's been, um no, she's been super supportive and she's definitely my best friend, so yeah that's awesome, and I feel like this one's right up your alley.

NorCal Guy:

What is your favorite way to connect with people in this space?

Vasia:

Definitely IRL if that's an option, I think yeah, meeting people in person, oh my God, a thousand percent, or even like a video call, I guess, kind of thing. Like when you're meeting someone in person, you know immediately, in two seconds, you know if they're genuine, you get the vibe, like I'm able to read a character like that. Digitally it's obviously a lot harder to vibe check and I definitely am all about reading the energy sort of thing. So definitely prefer in person meeting people and connecting and also obviously that's how you build and really foster relationships. But if that's not an option, I guess in terms of just connecting, I guess Twitter is gonna have to be the best. You know I'm not on Discord kind of thing, like I'm very rarely on Discord, but yeah, the Web3 focus is definitely just and my DMs are pretty open, like I kind of go through and respond and catch up when I can.

NorCal Guy:

So yeah, so do you have any questions for me?

Vasia:

I do, yeah, so do you have any questions for me? I do as a collector. What kind of inspired you don't be nervous, um, no, as a collector, what kind of inspired you to move into more of the the builder role, like what you're doing and you were telling me before, like you've been doing this for multiple years. This isn't, and I think a lot of collectors just take a step back, but you obviously do the podcasting, you do click, create, like what made you take more of an active role.

NorCal Guy:

Well, as far as the podcast, I was like I don't really listen to long form podcasts. I don't have. I have three kids. I'm at home with them like four days plus a week and I don't and like, especially now with homeschooling, like I'm homeschooling them, I'm actively involved in that I don't have time to listen to like a two to three hour podcast. Like just sit there and if you're like trying to and in my town it like takes like 15 minutes to get anywhere, so if I'm like trying to listen to my car and it's going to be like take a month to listen to this thing. So I wanted something that was like short form, that would give people an intro, but like a deep intro into who this person was on the other side, and so I tried to kind of like especially the artist side, line up my questions that would give insight into who this person was and keep it relatively short, like 45 minutes and below for the most part, like 45 minutes and below for the most part. So that was the podcast.

NorCal Guy:

As far as click create, you know, clutch and I had a show uh, a twitter spaces show, and we did a live one in a pepe gallery in miami together and we were talking about these um, curated collections like memes, pepe's noble gallery, and we were like talking about it and we were just going over it and then afterwards we were like I think we could do this differently, that would be better. And so we just kind of talked about it for a couple weeks and then made it happen. And we're, you know, finishing up season two now which is crazy About to launch season three, and so, yeah, we'll have a. December will be off, november is our last month of the year and our seasons are actually one year. It's like 10 months, but it's one full year, not like I don't know how some of these other companies do their seasons.

NorCal Guy:

Like three seasons in a year, I don't understand. I mean, I understand seasons, but yeah, but we do like one season per year and then it'll launch. We'll get it back going up in February of 25 for season three, which we already got our curators lined up. So yeah, I don't know. And now it's been fun, we've enjoyed it and I get to interview artists every week again and cause we, you know, promote artists there, it's it was strictly to promote artists and have like.

NorCal Guy:

We didn't want like random art, just just random art. We wanted some organization to it, some cohesiveness to it. So that's why we have a curator for it for each month that chooses like a theme and then these four to five artists make art around that theme. So you can go back and like, oh okay, I can see how these fit together here and these here.

NorCal Guy:

And with a curator, you know you get exposed to more artists than you do when it's just me or clutch, because we have our algo that just limits who we see. Pretty much, I mean I, I meet or I'm yeah, I mean I meet new artists every month because of it that's great and I actually really love the content.

Vasia:

I feel like platforms don't do that and it's really lacking, and some artists don't do it for themselves either, like they need that spotlight and guidance. So, yeah, that's definitely stuck out to me with what you guys have been doing, so awesome, congrats, thanks. Closing season two yeah, do you have any other questions? Um, well, I guess the main question for that, like why did you, as a collector, even want to take an active role, like I know, I guess organically, like does that make sense?

Vasia:

like most collectors are, like, they're just collectors you took more of an active approach, so like what made you want to do something more.

NorCal Guy:

No, that's a good question. I don't know why I decided to move forward and like be active in the space instead of like be in the background, cause that's a chill spot to be in the background.

Vasia:

It's easier, it's easier. And honestly, people fangirl you and like you get a lot of love as a collector, just as a collector. So yeah, like you didn't take the easy route.

NorCal Guy:

I don't, I don't know why, I don't know.

Intro:

I don't know it's weird.

NorCal Guy:

I don't know. You know, I guess I don't know, I really don't know. It blows my mind that I even started a podcast because I don't know. Do you remember the Renaissance roundtables, the early, early crypto Twitter spaces, crypto art Twitter spaces?

Vasia:

Yeah, I was on those Very vaguely.

NorCal Guy:

Oh really, and I never spoke because I was so shy of speaking. To transition into starting a podcast does not make any sense because I, you know, like have that stage fright type of thing. I mean, I've like gone through it really well, obviously over three years, but I don't know what even like it didn't make any sense why I would do that Like, uh, dude, you are like shy and don't do that, why are you thinking about doing a podcast?

Vasia:

I don't know and then, but with the comfort zone.

NorCal Guy:

Yeah.

Vasia:

And I don't know what to do with click, create I don't know.

NorCal Guy:

I I I guess partly because Clutch. He is a really amazing and smart business guy and I knew partnering him would be a winning bet for sure. We've been friends in the space for a while and we got to know each other through bidding against each other and on auctions and whatnot, and then both got into tungsten Tao and then just like became friends. Like if we lived closer together we'd be hanging out like every weekend Our families would be for sure.

Vasia:

Yeah, yeah, yeah. That's the best when you get to build those kinds of relationships with people here. But you answered it honestly before. I mean you said like you did what you did in Miami and then you're like we could do this and we can kind of do it better than what is kind of existing. So I feel like that goes back to you, know, wanting to step in and be proactive, because we need people like that. Like, honestly, not all collectors can. Just you know it. It takes a team effort here and I think we need more builders to step up to the plane and it's okay to be a collector and be obviously building something sustainable and, you know, long-term. So yeah, for sure, thanks for your contributions to this, of course.

NorCal Guy:

Of course, oh man, all right, any other questions?

Vasia:

No, you're good Interrogation's over, do you?

NorCal Guy:

have any, any hot takes you want to share?

Vasia:

we can skip it, but I mean, I don't know if it's a hot take or not, but I basically just brands are the key, like I'm gonna keep reiterating this like more emphasis, I think needs and that's what I'm trying to do with moments in the agency and part of the reason of launching like yeah, there's three kind of components and artists and events and whatever but the main focus is from. For me, I'm most passionate and excited about brands, because I think they can have the largest impact, yeah, and bringing in those masses. So for me, it's really about again putting art at the forefront, but really targeting those brands for sure was that a hot take?

Vasia:

I don't even know uh I mean not so controversial most people.

NorCal Guy:

I mean, I guess a good chunk of people are kind of like anti-web2 big brands type of thing, so I know.

Vasia:

But I don't agree with that. That's like it's because they haven't done it right. It's because we haven't seen a good proof of concept. It's true, it's very. People are pitching them wrong.

Vasia:

Yeah and it's, and it feels like it's extractive as well, I mean I guess, if you have a, celebrity coming in and they're launching a meme coin and then it goes zero see, no, see, right there, you know, yeah, that too, but like, but the fact that it's like celebrities and brands coming in and pitching to web3, like, no, like, web3 needs to like, pitch to them and pitch to their audience, and that's how we bring them in and extract from them. What are we talking about? We're hungry over here. We gotta bring in new money and new people, because if we don't like, there's no way this is gonna survive. That's the biggest, at the end of the day, the underlying factor, like, if we're trying to be here in five years, we got to make sure new people come in and new people bring some bags, because we don't got them anymore over here, as much as we, as much as we wish we did for sure for sure yeah so any projects you're working on you'd like to discuss, tell us about moments agency or anything along those lines.

Vasia:

Yeah, so for moments, there's a few brands I'm in conversations with right now, but it's too soon to disclose any kind of information, unfortunately. But I am really honestly excited because they're brands that everyone knows and, again, like it's going to have a big impact and big splash in terms of the amount of people it's going to reach and and the amount of people that would be using this technology. So I'm super excited about that. I do think it's going to have to be a 2025 announcement. That being said, one of the other things I'm working on is castle party with Trevor Jones. That's helping out with the production and coordination of all that.

Vasia:

And if you don't know what castle Party is, I mean, literally Trevor threw a party in a castle in Scotland what two, three years ago now for his collectors and community, like if you had a Bitcoin angel with an all-inclusive kind of party. And then he did it last year in France and it was incredible. I got to actually go to that one and like forget Web3 event, like just event of the year in general, like such a high execution of tapping into the art, the culture. He had a whole charity auction involved and and it going towards it was you know in in memory of a lot of money, um, and it was donating to a cancer maggie's, a cancer society that supports families that are unfortunately going through that and, um, giving them resources as well, um, so, yeah, I mean, castle Party 2025 is going to be during NFC Lisbon. Right after so, it's going to be in Portugal. It's an insane venue two pools like massive yeah, massive castle, and a lot of amazing people are going to be coming together and that's, I think, what I love the most about Castle Party.

Vasia:

Like Trevor keeps it intimate and small. It's about 300 people, 250. And you get to really, really connect with these guys and he attracts such a solid community and I think that's one of my favorite part is like it's genuine individuals, very like-minded individuals, and, yeah, we get to come together and really develop these relationships that I walked away from last castle party with, like friends that I consider extremely close to me and and got to network with a bunch. That also led to business opportunities as well. So, um, I don't think anyone is really executing the type of quality like Trevor is and and in general, I think it's just one of those, like, put it on your calendar, can't miss events. So, yeah, working toward Castle Party. Basically that's the next big one and there's a couple of smaller things in between, finalizing some conversations with right now, but that's one I'm the most excited about. So hopefully I'll see you in Portugal next year. But you're an archangel, I told you before. I know, I know.

NorCal Guy:

But man, I got next year, but you're an archangel, I told you I know, I know, but I man, I got three little kids.

Vasia:

It's hard to travel like six. It is three, it is 10 months. So, oh, baby, baby, okay, fine, you do have the excuse, I'll give it to you. So maybe the following year, yeah.

NorCal Guy:

For the future. For sure, for sure.

Vasia:

Okay.

NorCal Guy:

Yeah, and are you having you getting ready to launch like a podcast, twitter spaces thing? I am.

Vasia:

Thank you for reminding me I am actually. So we're doing Moments, the Podcast, which is essentially Wednesdays every week. Hard Art Milton and I are kind of co-hosting together and the main purpose really was so the focus is taking tweets that kind of went viral that week and having a conversation about them. Yeah, so we did. We did one last week. It was Daniel from Chansey at Labs tweeted something about web three like management services, and it got insane, insane engagement and there was a lot of different comments down below um and we started talking about it was funny the evolution of like people's perspectives, like in 2021, especially like working at crypt gallery. It was like no middleman needed, like it was a very sensitive conversation, even doing curated drops on nifty. Like it was sensitive. Like web three meant to cut out the middleman and artists can now, you know, do everything on their own.

Vasia:

Fast forward a few years. I think people got a little bit more realistic in the sense of like it takes a village, like if there's a lot of components in order to really build out your brand and so artists are not asking for these services. And his original tweet was kind of like who's here doing this? Because it didn't feel like a lot of people were providing those artist services. Um, and then at the end of each space, I really just want to make sure that there's a value add, that there's like an actual action steps, like things that people could take away and do today. So at the end of that space, it really ended with, okay, well, what if I don't have a budget for artist services, like, what am I supposed to do now?

Vasia:

And the key takeaways. We had a couple of things that we went over in terms of like, well, if you're an artist, this is what you can do today and this is like some of the more impactful things that you know you can do on your own until you're ready to really build out your team. So the weekly spaces are really meant to just open a conversation and dialogue. We do invite a lot of people up to join us from from to join us on stage and, yeah, just to focus on current trending topics that are relevant and really making sure we open up the conversation and debate some things out as well, because, again, we're kind of building the future of this industry and it's healthy to have these conversations and I think it's not OK sitting on the sidelines and allowing certain things to go down which maybe we're not so okay with.

NorCal Guy:

So yeah, awesome Well yeah. Thank you so much for enlightening me with some great answers and some fun chat, and I just want to say thank you again and I hope you have a great day.

Vasia:

Thanks you as well. Thank you so much for having me. This is awesome. It's actually my first kind of formal sit down, so you made it really easy.

Intro:

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