Djimon Hounsou And LÁOLÚ To Launch Premium NFT Collection 'Time To Heal', On Binance NFT Marketplace

SINGAPORE and NEW YORK and LONDON, Nov. 3, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Binance, the world's leading blockchain ecosystem and cryptocurrency infrastructure provider has today announced that Beninese-American Hollywood star and model, Djimon Honsou and famous Nigerian painter, LÁOLÚ will be exhibiting their digital artist series, "Time To Heal", on the Binance NFT Marketplace. This collaboration is for Binance Charity's NFT For Good Campaign, which enables creators to convert their art and creativity into meaningful global action targeting social and humanitarian issues.

Djimon Hounsou who portrayed Korath the Pursuer in Marvel blockbuster movies, Guardians of the Galaxy and Captain Marvel, will be body painted by LÁOLÚ, the Nigerian artist behind the body art in Beyoncé's Grammy award-winning Lemonade. The abstract image will then be projected on a physical canvas and subsequently converted to a digital NFT version.

The NFT collection, consisting of five unique portraits, will launch on November 10, 2021 and proceeds will be shared between the artists and the Djimon Hounsou Foundation through the Binance Charity. "I feel this compelling need, this inherent obligation to give back to my continent, to my people, and to champion the idea of reconciliation and reconnection," says Djimon.

LÁOLÚ added: "There is so much we can do when we come together. Through my work I've always sought to connect the world to my Yoruba roots. With this project, we're doing that on a large scale by sharing not only our own stories but that of the diaspora within the digital landscape." 

On November 9, 2021, Djimon and LÁOLÚ will also join Binance for a live 'Ask Me Anything' chat on Binance YouTube, discussing NFTs, their entrance into the crypto and blockchain space and how NFTs can impact African artists.

Emmanuel Babalola, Director at Binance Africa, said: "We are especially excited to host creators of African descent as we see the profound opportunity NFTs and the blockchain bring to the entire continent. As NFTs transform the digital art world, it is important that African creators are provided an even larger platform with optimal solutions to reach a more global audience."

"Nearly 4 times as many people live in modern-day slavery than during the Transatlantic Slave Trade. We know blockchain is a powerful tool that can be used to help tackle complex and horrific social issues - such as this -  from tackling corruption to increasing transparency to promoting financial freedom to providing new fundraising streams such as the recent NFT boom. Cross industry collaborations such as this one between Djimon, his foundation, Láolú and Binance are essential to help harness this potential and drive forward blockchain for good."  Comments Helen Hai, Head of Binance Charity and Binance NFT.

Binance NFT is an established brand within the crypto community. In just a little over a month after its debut, Binance NFT became one of the fastest growing NFT platforms in the world, generating 25 million BUSD in sales, selling over 300,000 mystery boxes and onboarding 400 creators globally. Today, Binance NFT has sold over 900,000 mystery boxes and earned 103+ million BUSD in sales in total since launch.

The Binance NFT Marketplace shares the same account system as Binance.com. Existing Binance users are able to access the NFT marketplace and trade with their current Binance accounts. New users simply have to register on Binance.com to create or trade on the Binance NFT platform. Binance NFT has also added multi-chain support for NFT deposits and withdrawals. Users can now transfer their NFTs to and from Binance Smart Chain and Ethereum networks with ease.