There has been so much hype around the metaverse in recent years, but its definition, what it looks like and how it will impact our everyday lives is still being debated. Is it already here? Will it last? How will it really benefit? These are some of the hotly contested questions I’m often asked. 

Whilst it is still very much in its nascent phase, the vision is that the metaverse will help expand and enrich our real-life experiences, helping us to connect with people from all over the world in a more meaningful way. It’s the next generation of the internet; a persistent and shared virtual world where we can play, socialise, shop, work, learn and more. A connected experience where you can seamlessly move between platforms and experiences taking your personal digital avatar and crypto wallet with you. 

As an older woman and a non-tech native working in this space, I’m a prime example of just how possible breaking through the barriers to entry is.  My background is in the creative arts, training as a dancer from a young age; I’ve always had a huge passion for art and creativity. As an art collector myself, I used to feel intimidated going into galleries with white walls and expensive paintings with people creeping up on you asking if they could help you and looking down their nose. 

It dawned on me that, whilst I spent a lot of money on art and am a pretty confident person, I still felt intimidated by the traditional art-world, so what must that experience be like for others?

So, I decided to take the plunge and open my first art gallery. My mission was to break down the barriers and make art accessible for everybody. I wanted to banish the snobbery around art, and de-jargonise it – essentially removing barriers to people enjoying art. I founded the brand Bad Art, which rapidly cemented its reputation as a disruptive and dynamic venture within the art world. I created immersive and experiential gallery events. These quickly gained recognition through several award-wins and high profile events including Paul Karslake’s Banksy-inspired ‘Bank Robbery’ exhibition, which achieved extensive national media coverage and critical acclaim. 

As the world shifted during the pandemic, I became more and more interested in NFTs and their potential to elevate the art world through digital art. I saw an opportunity and began researching obsessively. I saw that it was evolving so rapidly and knew that wherever it was then, was not where it was going to end up. 

I was then introduced to the dynamic founder of Vertex Labs, Ander Tsui and Bobby Zhu through a business contact in 2020. Ander and Bobby are true visionaries with a keen eye for disruptive ventures. They had developed this technology far superior to anything else on the market at that time and were building a hyper-realistic virtual city called LightCycle, set to become the go-to destination for art, film, gaming, music, fashion, sport, property and retail. Powered by AI technology, it would empower users, businesses and brands to create commercial installations, or purchase land and other digital assets through a seamless and secure virtual experience. Users would be immersed in a bustling virtual commercial city where they could engage with their communities in new ways, interact with their favourite brands in a stunning 3D environment, experience live sport and music events, browse NFT collections in an NFT exhibition hall, or visit the fashionverse district. I was hooked. 

It struck me that, much the same as the art world, the jargon around the metaverse and blockchain revolution was a real sticking point for so many people. People in this space love to use all these acronyms and geek words – even the term ‘blockchain’ or ‘NFT’ made people glaze over.  Having made it my mission to slice through the jargon and barriers in the art world, I knew I could do the same and add huge value in the Web3 space. So, I boarded Lightycle as its CMO to help drive and realise its vision. 

Pivoting my skillset and black book of contacts, I got to work forming strategic partnerships that would take LightCycle to the next level. I realised that the key mistake brands were making was to focus only on Web3 natives. Yet for the metaverse to really take off, we need mass scale adoption. The real potential lies in brands leveraging the Web3 technology to engage with their existing audience in addressing current business challenges and capitalising on new opportunities. I knew that we needed to stop focussing only on the crypto natives because that wasn’t where this market was going to take us.  We needed to retrofit it, looking at what the problems were and what this new technology solves. Because blockchain technology and NFTs really do solve a lot of real life problems.

It was through this exact ethos that I was able to secure partnership with British singer-songwriter, Robbie Williams, for whom we recently announced his 2024 metaverse debut with LightCycle. I’ve also brought in some more really exciting household names and big brand live events soon to be announced. These artists and events will feature in LightCycle so that their fans, new and old, can enjoy next-level interaction and engagement. We’re just elevating their entertainment experience in a virtually enhanced way. 

I believe it’s really important to differentiate yourself in this market and to have a specialist USP. This is why, with LightCycle, we position ourselves as the metaverse for music, sport, and entertainment. People know that we specialise in music, art, entertainment and that gives mores impetus for them to come to us. 

I think the possibilities for the metaverse really are limitless. The future is where technology and creativity intersect to create new paradigms for cultural expression and human connection in an increasingly digital world. Another big opportunity for brands is the ability to overcome authenticity issues, particularly for the secondary resale marketplace. Once it’s on the blockchain, it can’t be changed or tampered with, it can’t be reproduced. Whatever is on the blockchain is factual and truthful. That’s it, you can’t mess with it. So, it overcomes the problem of authentication. It will also speed processes up. For example, if you buy a house through today’s traditional model, you have to wait for around six weeks for all the due diligence to be reviewed and completed. If that was on the blockchain, anyone can access that immediately. 

No one yet knows the impact the metaverse will have on our everyday lives. It depends on the power of computing and network abilities and the adoption rate of users. It won’t be an all at once moment, but rather a gradual collection of digital experiences that improve the way we live and work. As well as usage and adoption, it will depend on how much support and enthusiasm governments provide. Early data shows much higher metaverse adoption rates in Asia, MENA, and Europe than the United States. Which indicates that people in these regions have better access to the devices needed to use the metaverse, which makes it a favorable environment for the development and adoption of metaverse-related applications.

People say to me, ‘oh you work in crypto?’ ‘Well no, I don’t’, I say. Crypto is just the currency. Blockchain is a secure, digital ledger, like transparent record-keeping of transactions without the need for a intermediary.  NFTs are a digital transfer of ownership and the metaverse is the just the next phase of the internet. It’s a conversation I never tire of. It’s definitely worked to my advantage that I’m not a tech native in this industry and I hope, in some small way, it encourages us to change the narrative on gender bias in the tech world.  

-ENDS-

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About Vertex Labs 

Vertex Labs is a Metaverse, Web3 and AI infrastructure provider, powered by decentralised, real-time edge rendering engine. Its cutting-edge technology includes: A metaverse graph consensus mechanism enabling large-scale parallel processing that outmatches traditional Layer 1 protocols; a real-time edge rendering engine with flexible distributed real-time rendering technology delivering improved efficiency and lower costs for all users; interactive metaverse technology with extensive device and devkit support, enabling seamless creation and experience of immersive 3D models and environments. 

About LightCycle 

LightCycle is a realistic virtual commercial city, created using Unreal Engine 5 and real-time edge rendering technology. With powerful editor and AI generation technology, both users and merchants can effortlessly bring their content to life, offering a seamless and secure experience powered by blockchain technology. LightCycle offers a convergence that spans multiple industries, including art, film, gaming, music, fashion, sports, real estate, retail, and more. It provides an immersive cultural experience within a virtual commercial city that is bustling with activity.

The post How I Became A Metaverse Pioneer appeared first on CEO Medium.

Her great passion for performing music, writing, and training music and languages motivated her to establish a quality-based resource center to enrich further students attending her one-on-one and group lessons in high demand.

Since Oksana is an admirable example of “The American Dream,” she works as her brand ambassador to bestow her diligence, drive, global outreach, groundbreaking spirit, and talent upon it. Oksana started her classical piano lessons at an early age and continued after her family relocated to Kazakhstan, Russia, from Siberia. Since Oksana had the inspiration and determination to develop her talent, she started winning music competitions and continued her training as a pianist. With educated parents who pursued opportunities for their children, Oksana moved to the U.S with her family after the dissolution of the Soviet Union and started a new life in St. Petersburg, Florida.

As a student in the current St. Petersburg College, Oksana won a piano competition held during the Florida State Young Artists Symposium, which enabled her to secure a scholarship at the prestigious Florida State University School of Music, where she graduated with honors in 2001. She realized her entrepreneurial and marketing, and branding skills after she started booking piano performances to demonstrate her talent throughout Florida. Her fan base started to grow tremendously, and she began to get gigs that included charitable and business concerts, private events, and recurring bookings on the Home Shopping Network.

In 1999, Oksana fell in love with Italian-born Alex after meeting him at his birthday party. They married one year later.  The new relationship with Alex, who had a Marketing and PR background, launched a productive and creative chapter. With Alex as her manager, the two developed splendid national and international relationships by working together as a power couple.

In 2003, Oksana broke records by becoming the first female Russian pianist to go abroad and perform for the U.S military. Although Oksana traveled in September 2003 but stopped in Italy, Spain, and Greece, to entertain the U.S Troops, she traveled twice with the Morale, Welfare and Recreation (MWR), a U.S. Navy division. In February 2004, she performed in Guam, Korea, Japan, Okinawa, and Singapore, always with MWR Navy. She also received invitations to showcase her talent to United Nations officials in Europe and the US

After becoming a U.S citizen in 2006, Oksana went to Italy and performed in front of thousands on the opening night of the Salento International Film Festival. Together with Alex, she relocated to Beverly Hills, California, where she secured the in-house pianist role at The Polo Lounge, the legendary 5-star venue inside The Beverly Hills Hotel. From 2006 to 2013, Oksana performed in this venue daily to entertain just about every A-list celebrity. During that time, her demand for entertaining people at special occasions and fundraising events, and offer piano lessons to stars and children in Los Angeles increased. Besides, her fan base started to grow online. While at the Polo Lounge, Oksana performed throughout her pregnancy period until she gave birth to her son, Alessandro, in 2009.

She pursued to meet schools’ and parents’ needs and cultivated her brand by utilizing business expertise and connections she had established in Los Angeles and internationally. Under her Oksana® Management Group, formed in 2010, she established Oksana School of Music, which received the Best of Beverly Hills Award in 2014. Her popular public image made her music school the primary choice for superstars who wanted to learn music together with their loved ones. Her incorporation of lessons through Skype to overcome logistical problems enabled her to teach students in different areas, even before the pandemic. Oksana began partnerships by seeking cross-promotions, collaborations, and endorsements, which helped her study successful companies’ business practices.

In 2016, the couple moved to cozy Santa Clarita, CA from bustling Beverly Hills. The relocation enabled Oksana to work with local organizations to oversee socializing, develop her music programs, language, and teaching, and develop her extracurricular development programs in the area. Consequently, her schedule of instructions increased, and her relationships with school districts and municipalities increased, allowing her to offer artistic and out-of-school lessons effectively.

By 2019, her business entities, under the Oksana Management Group, Inc., comprise many instructors (whom she selects), students, and works with many institutions in southern California and beyond. Her Oksana Enrichment Programs can accommodate other subjects, although they focus on personalized programs in music, international languages, and academic coaching in all subjects.

In October 2019, Oksana, with a franchise consultant’s expert help, established her Oksana® Franchising International, Inc. to expand her programs to national and international levels. In 2020, she founded Oksana Foundation, a 501 (c)(3) nonprofit organization that offers extracurricular education to financially challenged youth. Moreover, she creates social and networking fundraising events to help others. In early 2020, she attended the pre-Grammy Awards party in Los Angeles, where she received the Excellence in Education Award and performed some of her compositions.

Oksana has recorded eight CDs consisting of unique, traditional, and standard music and instructional video for piano students. In 2010, her “Free Floating” album became the best album that year after she secured the Best Classical Album award, posted on SoloPiano.com. 

Although she has been working on her music together with other international artists, international artists choose her original compositions to record on their CDs. She derived her “Best of Two Worlds” CD from collaboration with notable fine artist Jim Warren. Her YouTube channel, Oksanabella, which features her many performances, has over 3 million views to date. 

Oksana Kolesnikova is currently a member of the Forbes Business Council, the leading development and socialization organization for distinguished global entrepreneurs and officials. 

Get in touch with Oksana on:

• Facebook: omgoksana
• Instagram: omgoksana
• LinkedIn: Linkedin.com/in/omgoksana
• YouTube: youtube.com/oksanabella

Website: www.oksanaenrichment.com

The post From Musician to CEO: Get to Know Oksana Kolesnikova appeared first on CEO Medium.

Tell us about who you are and what you do.

I am Clendon Brown. A god-fearing man who is enjoying the new responsibilities of being a father. I have infinity and passion for music. My content can be found on my Instagram page. Spotify, Apple Music, SoundCloud, and google play. Also very big on entrepreneurship, investing with the forex stock market (before the epidemic). I also am starting my entertainment group called Jazzy Jupiter ENT.  I also stream live on twitch or YouTube for my gamer channel rockstarmist

Tell us about yourself how you created this brand and what was the sole idea behind it.

On how I build my brain is I just do what I love to do. And show people about my journey. Learn from my failures let anybody in who will give me a listening ear. Most of my creativeness comes from my imagination or my emotions.

 What is your giveaway idea through this interview? 

My giveaway idea is to keep.striving.onward which is why people call me kso klindon – k.s.o is an acronym for keep striving onward. I want to become living proof that dreams are possible if you work smart or hard enough.

Explain the challenges you went through while you were working on brand creation. 

Some of the challenges I went through creating my brain was just finding myself. Being easily distracted. Finance, learning what to invest in and How to better invest in me. People believe in my ability, they didn’t take me as seriously.

How do you manage your finances through the services you offer?

To our well I handle my finances I like to pay myself first and help out anybody established with me pay their bills so I don’t even worry about my bills.

Tell us your future vision about the brand. How far do you want to take it? What is your dream about taking it to the next level?

My future vision for my branch/company is for everybody to be happy and successful and what do you do to be financially free wealthy and prosperous. with great amounts of passive income.

What message would you like to give to anybody who has a plan of creating something of their own and making a living through it?

For anybody else who is trying to become their own boss work diligently don’t give up even when it feels rough. Don’t let anybody weekend or downsize your dream. Surround yourself with people that will help you and you can help them and bring value to each other.

Follow Clenton Brown on Instagram:  kso_klindon1872

The post Exclusive Story of Clendon Brown on Becoming a Six-Figure Investor and Following His Passion For Music appeared first on CEO Medium.