Undoubtedly, we are witnessing history right now, written by none other than the BAYC NFTs and their journey on becoming the most iconic brand in the NFT sphere.
A group of four pseudonymous developers, Gargamel, Gordon Goner, Emperor Tomato Ketchup, and No Sass, launched Bored Ape Yacht Club in April 2021. At a price of 0.08 ETH, it took 12 hours for all 10,000 NFTs to be sold out.
BAYC is certainly giving competitive pressure to the OG CryptoPunk NFTs, as multiple musicians, actors, influencers, etc are hopping on the BAYC NFT hype train, boosting the club’s value.
So, here’s a list of some of the most well-known celebrities who have aped their way into the Bored Ape Yacht Club.
1. Snoop Dogg
Who better off to start the celebrity list than the rap legend Snoop Dogg. The hip-hop star sent the whole NFT community into a frenzy when he tweeted, “When I APE in, I APE all the way in.”
Snoop, who runs an NFT-centric Twitter account titled ‘Cozomo de’ Medici’ owns the BAYC NFT #7773.
Snoop is the owner of a complete set comprising a Bored Ape, an M1, and an M2 Mutant. The purchase of a Bored Ape Kennel NFT is the cherry on top.
He utilized Moonpay to buy the BAYC NFT and also owns multiple NFTs of CryptoPunks, Meebits, Art Blocks, Chromie Squiggle.
Recently Snoop called the Bored Ape Yacht Club a “cultural juggernaut” and asked to take him into their advisory board to which the club replied “Hell yeah Snoop”.
Follow Snoop on Twitter: @SnoopDogg, @CozomoMedici
2. Eminem
The immense popularity of BAYC NFTs is not up for debate when even rap god Eminem owns an ape. The Detroit-native bought the BAYC NFT for a record 123.45 Ether, approximately $453k from Twitter user @GeeGazza, who has manifested for months for Eminem to one day own the NFT.
The BAYC NFT #9055 labeled “EminApe,” depicts an ape dressed in a khaki army hat and a gold chain necklace, resembling Eminem.
The 15 times Grammy winner revealed the purchase by sharing the image of the bored ape NFT on Twitter by keeping it as his display picture.
Follow Eminem on Twitter: @Eminem
3. Justin Bieber
Everyone knows who Bieber is and not only the NFT community but the whole internet tuned in when he bought an ape for a whopping $1.3M.
The Grammy award-winning Pop Star purchased his BAYC NFT for a record 500 ETH via MoonPay.
Bored Ape #3001 is a dark brown fur ape and its characteristics include a New Punk Blue background, which only 12% of all apes have, a Black T, which only 3% of all apes have, sad eyes, and a bored unshaven mouth.
Bieber appears to have no intention of stopping there, as he recently added another BAYC NFT #3805 to his portfolio.
Justin Bieber bought the NFT #3805 for 166 ETH, approximately $460k, and the pink fur ape sports a rare bandana blue hat with a grin diamond grill mouth.
Creators of many knockoff sets of exclusive NFTs are pelting Justin Bieber with their NFTs in order to raise the floor price of their NFT.
Follow Justin Bieber on Twitter: @JustinBieber
4. Paris Hilton
American media personality and businesswoman Paris Hilton is the latest celebrity who aped into the club with the purchase of BAYC NFT #1294.
Paris revealed her BAYC NFT in the Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon where she also announced the launch of her NFT collection “Forever Fairytale” and gifted Fallon and the audience members with a few NFTs, making it the first NFT giveaway in television history.
She too used the Moonpay service to buy the BAYC NFT for 119 ETH. Bored Ape #1294 is a red fur ape with an s&m hat, sunglasses, purple background, and a bored mouth.
“I was going through a lot of them and I was like I want something that kind of reminds me of me,” Hilton explained to Jimmy Fallon when he asked how she ended up choosing Bored Ape #1294.
Follow Paris on Twitter: @ParisHilton
5. Jimmy Fallon
The Tonight Show host Jimmy Fallon is yet another famous celebrity who hit headlines when he announced that he owns a BAYC NFT.
He disclosed the news while chatting with NFT artist Beeple last November saying that he purchased an ape via Moonpay.
Fallon then took it to Twitter and revealed his BAYC NFT #599 with the caption “Permission to come a bored?” and it is still his display picture.
In the recent interview with Paris Hilton, Fallon expressed gratitude to Hilton for teaching him about NFTs and informed her that he aped into the BAYC. In the same show, Hilton too revealed her ape saying she copied his move and purchased it through MoonPay.
BAYC NFT #599 is a cream fur ape with a sea captain hat and heart glasses and Fallon purchased the NFT for 46.6 ETH, approximately $220k.
Follow Jimmy Fallon on Twitter: @JimmyFallon
6. Post Malone
Rapper Post Malone joined the BAYC NFT club with the purchase of Bored Ape #961 and Bored Ape #9039.
Post Malone was seen purchasing BAYC NFT #961 via MoonPay in a collaboration music video “One Right Now” with The Weeknd. The Weeknd is also an NFT enthusiast and is one of the board members of Tom Brady’s NFT platform Autograph.
He also kept BAYC #961 as his display picture on Twitter for some time.
Posty later bought the ape #9039 which is a much rarer NFT than BAYC #961. MoonPay then posted TikTok videos showing off the purchase of the two NFTs.
He bought BAYC #961 and BAYC #9039 for 75 ETH and 85 ETH respectively making the worth of the total purchase nearly $700k.
Follow Post Malone on Twitter: @PostMalone
7. Kevin Hart
American actor and comedian Kevin Hart joined the list of celebrities who aped into the BAYC club by purchasing a popular NFT.
Hart purchased BAYC NFT #9258, a dark brown fur ape with a spinner hat and guayabera clothes.
24 apes in the BAYC collection have a yellow background matching with yellow Guayabera clothing, and BAYC #9258 is one of them. Only 181 apes have a spinner hat as an attribute making the NFT really popular.
MoonPay’s concierge service facilitated the transaction and Hart bagged the NFT for 79.5 ETH, approximately $200k.
Follow Kevin Hart on Twitter: @KevinHart
8. Marshmello
If we are talking about celebrities in the BAYC NFT space we can’t ignore DJ and EDM producer Marshmello who was in the game before multiple celebs started to jump in the hype.
Marshmello purchased a rare BAYC NFT #4808 for about 75 ETH, approximately $218k. Ape #4808 is a cream fur ape wearing 3D glasses and has a multicolored grin, both of which are prominent traits among the BAYC community.
The EDM artist is active in the NFT sphere and has sported a CryptoPunk display picture for a while on Twitter and endorsed CrypToadz last October.
Follow Marshmello on Twitter: @Marshmello
9. The Chainsmokers
The American DJ duo, The Chainsmokers are one of the celebrities who joined the club the earliest and added an ape NFT into their portfolio.
The duo purchased BAYC NFT #7691, a cheetah fur ape sporting a Black T for about 55 ETH, approximately $210k, and kept that as their Twitter display picture for a period of time.
The artists also own a very rare BAYC NFT #6199, a seven-trait red fur ape with caveman pelt clothing and X eyes, which they bought for 79 ETH.
The Chainsmokers had also invested in various crypto-based startups and have been involved in the NFT space for some time. They recently backed NFT music platform Royal founded by yet another famous DJ 3Lau.
Follow The Chainsmokers on Twitter: @TheChainsmokers
10. Mike Shinoda
The popular American rock band Linkin Park’s vocalist and guitarist Mike Shinoda is a very familiar name in the NFT community.
Aside from dropping NFT collections of his own Shinoda bought the bored ape #2299 along with five other MAYC NFTs.
BAYC NFT #2299 is a seven-trait cheetah fur ape with a biker vest and silver hoop earrings. He displays the NFTS he owns through his Audius profile and has released multiple NFTs, mostly via Hic et Nunc NFT marketplace.
Mike Shinoda dropped the first-ever generative NFT mixtape titled ‘Ziggurats’ last year on the Tezos Blockchain.
Follow Mike on Twitter: @MikeShinoda
11. DJ Khaled
Popular record producer DJ Khaled hopped on the BAYC NFT bandwagon last November.
The musician famous for his collaborations with the top artists in the industry purchased BAYC NFT #7380 through MoonPay’s concierge service.
Khaled bought the NFT for approximately $227k worth of ETH and right now it’s his profile picture on his Instagram account.
Follow DJ Khaled on Twitter: @DJKhaled
12. Gwyneth Paltrow
The Golden Globe award-winning actress Gwyneth Paltrow known for her quirky business adventures is one of a few female celebrities who joined the BAYC club.
A few days back, the MCU actress revealed an animated version of BAYC NFT #6141 via her official Twitter handle.
Like multiple other celebrities, Paltrow also purchased the BAYC NFT via MoonPay concierge service for about $228k worth of ETH.
Follow Gwyneth Paltrow on Twitter: @GwynethPaltrow
13. Gary Vaynerchuk
One of the top NFT influencers and entrepreneurs of recent times, Gary Vee, is not only an avid enthusiast of CryptoPunk but also got his hands on a few BAYC NFTs.
Gary currently owns apes #7912, #8106, #1452, #3212, and 3 more which probably means he aped into the club during the initial mint itself.
Along with the BAYC NFTs he also has a few MAYC NFTs in his possession so that means he’s pretty much ahead than other celebs who own just one or two apes.
Follow Gary on Twitter: @GaryVee
14. Lil Baby
American rapper Lil Baby aka Dominique Armani Jones purchased his Bored Ape #129 for 38 Ethereum which is approximately worth approximately 70 ETH right now.
BAYC NFT #129’s attributes are pink fur, a white tank top, and a blue bonnet with the purchase done via MoonPay.
Along with a BAYC NFT, Lil Baby also mutated his ape with an M2 serum to create Mutant Ape Yacht Club NFT #10259.
MAYC NFT #10259 is his display picture on Twitter at this moment and all the BAYC transactions were facilitated by MoonPay, of course.
Lil Baby also performed at the warehouse party hosted by the Bored Ape Yacht Club in New York City, which was endorsed by MoonPay.
Follow Lil Baby on Twitter: @LilBaby
15. Timbaland
The legendary Grammy-winning music producer Timothy Zachery Mosley aka Timbaland owns the BAYC NFT #590.
He purchased the ape for 74.69 ETH and it is now his Twitter display picture.
BAYC NFT #590 is a brown fur ape with hip-hop clothes, scumbag eyes, gray background, and a bored mouth.
Timbaland later went on to launch Ape-in production company to collaborate with Bored Ape Yacht Club NFTs holders to create music and animation for metaverse applications.
Follow Timbaland on Twitter: @Timbaland
