Unreleased Whitney Houston demo sold for $1 million in an NFT auction

An unreleased demo of a Whitney Houston song has been sold for $1million at a recent NFT auction. It is reported that the late artist recorded the song when she was 17, yet it was never made available to the public. The demo was provided by OneOf, an eco-conscious NFT platform, and was auctioned off on December 14th.

The winning bidder now has access to the full-length demo in the OneOfVault and a digital video created by artist Diana Sinclair. The video is comprised of rare archival photos of the singer.

“Being able to collaborate with her music and her family really transformed the way that I saw her in her music videos. I feel more connected to the person that she was. Some of the messages that I put across in my artwork as well, they’re very similar,” Sinclair said in a video from Houston’s NFT collection landing page.

“Working with her voice on something like this really tied me to that time and her in a way that I wouldn’t have had before.”

Included in the Whitney Houston NFT collection are thousands of tokens featuring rare photos of Houston’s early life and career. These tokens are designed as a digital scrapbook and have sold for $1.1 million overall. To give back to the community, the proceeds from the auction will benefit the Whitney E. Houston Foundation. Additionally, the collection also has artworks inspired by Houston’s discography and  “The Greatest Love of All” and “I Will Always Love You” music videos.

“I’m excited to see Whitney’s legacy and her wonderful music expand into [the] bold new technology of this era,” said Pat Houston, executor of Houston’s estate, in a press release. “It was a joy partnering with 17-year-old Diana Sinclair and watching the artistry of Whitney’s music influence a new generation.”

OneOf co-founder, Joshua James added that “Whitney is an icon for the ages. We couldn’t be more excited to be releasing this historical song from the very beginning of her journey as an artist.”

The Whitney E. Houston Foundation is a non-profit organization that works to inspire and create opportunities and empower the youth.

Source: Billboard, NME.com