Who is that this individual anyway?
Irene Zhao, the Simp-Queen mastermind behind the SO-COL platform and a Crypto Twitter influencer, explains that having a celeb in your nook can turbocharge your NFT assortment.
Zhao’s first Simp DAO and NFT assortment, IreneDAO, began with a flooring worth that was mainly pocket change in ETH.
“I feel it was about zero-point-something ETH,” Zhao remembers.
Nonetheless, the sport modified for Zhao when controversial YouTube star Logan Paul threw in round 1 / 4 of 1,000,000 {dollars} in January 2022.
“The following day, I wakened, the ground worth went up 5 instances when Logan Paul purchased about 20 items or one thing. I used to be actually shocked,” she explains.
I can’t repair you 👉👈 pic.twitter.com/oyMLut3S2F
— Irene Zhao (@Irenezhao_) November 4, 2023
Zhao reveals that Paul stumbled upon the venture after billionaire crypto investor Mike Novogratz posted about it on Twitter. That kickstarted a friendship with Paul:
“Logan adopted me on Twitter and Instagram after he purchased my NFTs,” Zhao says, including, nonetheless, that they’ve by no means managed to satisfy up.
“I used to be going to journey to Los Angeles, however on the time, he was someplace in Puerto Rico. So, we didn’t get to satisfy ultimately. However we do have conversations about NFTs.”
Rubbing digital shoulders with large names like Paul is only a common day within the lifetime of a crypto influencer. Zhao boasts 194,300 Twitter followers, runs her personal Web3 NFT platform firm, SO-COL, and globe-trots to talk at crypto conferences.
“I meet a whole lot of cool and profitable individuals, and so they all have very attention-grabbing personalities. In any other case, they wouldn’t select crypto as a profession as a result of it’s a really dynamic and really fast-paced profession trade.”
What led to Twitter fame?
Zhao had already constructed a following as a social media influencer within the Web2 area, and very like Bitcoiners orange-pilling their buddies, she has launched most of her followers to NFTs.
“I’ve been constructing my very own private branding as a key opinion chief throughout varied social media platforms like Instagram and YouTube. So, proper now, I’ve about half 1,000,000 followers throughout all platforms.”
I’ve been an IG influencer since my college days. I received fortunate and Folks appreciated my pictures. In six years I now have some 300k+ followers, amongst the highest 10 influencers in Singapore. You’d assume I’m comparatively properly to do with such an enormous follower base. However you might be mistaken. pic.twitter.com/UT0A3eDN64
— Irene Zhao (@Irenezhao_) January 20, 2022
She jumped into crypto as a result of she wished to have management over her personal content material. She was fed up with solely monetizing her content material by selling merchandise, which is how Web2 influencers make a residing.
“I’ve constructed a deep reference to a whole lot of large manufacturers, but it surely type of sucks, as a result of regardless that I’ve a really large following on all different social media platforms, I don’t actually get many of the advantages. I don’t actually personal my content material or my group.”
Zhao arrange one of many first Simp DAOs, the place NFT purchasers might be a part of her Irene DAO fan membership and get nearer to their Simp Queen. She later spun this concept out for the SO-COL platform.
In my well being is wealth period😎
I’m so prepared for the street journey with @truck_memecoin pic.twitter.com/2Wh1TqsIps
— Irene Zhao (@Irenezhao_) November 1, 2023
Zhao jokingly mentions that she’s an enormous deal in Asia however can roam underneath the radar within the Western world:
“They acknowledge me, particularly in Asia, however within the Western world, the white individuals can’t actually acknowledge Asian individuals. They assume all people seems to be the identical,” she laughs.
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What content material can individuals count on?
Zhao isn’t a fan of the intense tone of some within the crypto world. In her perspective, those that get pleasure from technical or buying and selling discussions may not essentially be essentially the most interesting minds within the crypto group.
“I feel I just like the shitposting. It’s fairly humorous; it’s very entertaining to take a look at all of the memes.”
He doesn’t ship me crypto memes anymore, it is over I misplaced him.
— Irene Zhao (@Irenezhao_) Could 9, 2022
Zhao holds the assumption that making crypto memes requires an even bigger mind than sharing buying and selling ideas:
“It’s a very sensible transfer as a result of it’s important to perceive the market, and it’s important to perceive the viewers to provide you with the precise meme that folks need. So, it’s a really uncommon expertise to have.”
Think about spending 1 hour a day making memes and shitposts on Twitter, that’s 30 hours a month.
Should you had spent these 30 hours buying and selling crypto. You’d have missed out on the easy joys of shitposting and even lose cash.
— Irene Zhao (@Irenezhao_) November 15, 2021
Nasty Beef: Girl of Crypto
Zhao had a public beef with fellow crypto influencer Girl of Crypto in December 2021.
The feud lit up after Zhao evenly teased her on Twitter for meting out a no brainer tweet.
“She was predicting the value of Bitcoin or one thing, but it surely was a brilliant apparent pattern. So, I used to be like, ‘You’re stating the apparent,’ after which she received offended.”
The state of affairs took a bitter twist when Girl of Crypto fired again with some nasty feedback about Zhao’s English abilities, saying, “In your vids, you possibly can barely string two phrases collectively.”
Zhao didn’t let it get to her personally and thought it was “tremendous humorous.”
Ever the businesswoman, Zhao was extra enthusiastic about the truth that the publish collected round “4 million impressions.”
Lady, you are doing such a fantastic job with $KONO.
Query although.
In your vids, you possibly can barely string two phrases collectively. But the English in your tweets is 👌, why is that? pic.twitter.com/PSZykRaYd6
— Girl of Crypto (@LadyofCrypto1) December 11, 2021
Predictions?
Zhao’s predictions are just about according to widespread, obtained knowledge. She’s eagerly anticipating Bitcoin to succeed in the $100,000 mark.
Nonetheless, she’s additionally betting large on real-world belongings taking off within the subsequent 12 months:
“In fact, I’m nonetheless bullish on BTC, Ethereum and all of the fundamentals. Persons are speaking about RWA so much. I feel actual world belongings are in all probability going to go large within the subsequent 12 months.”
She additionally believes that NFTs nonetheless have room for development as a result of loads of celebrities haven’t hopped on the bandwagon but.
“I feel NFTs for creators goes to be an actual hype actually quickly as a result of we haven’t actually skilled it but,” she explains.
“I’m nonetheless bullish on social collectibles as a result of we haven’t actually onboarded all of the Web2 creators to NFTs but. So, I feel there may be nonetheless a lot room for that.”
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Ciaran Lyons
Ciaran Lyons is an Australian crypto journalist. He is additionally a standup comic and has been a radio and TV presenter on Triple J, SBS and The Undertaking.
