Till Lindemann, lead singer of the German metal band Rammstein, has angered Russia’s renowned Hermitage Museum with a crypto initiative. The musician seeks over a hundred thousand euros for an NFT collection containing footage and imagery shot in the cultural institution. The tokens have been created without its authorization. 

German Singer Till Lindemann Sells NFTs of Russian Art Without Permission

Rammstein’s vocalist and songwriter Till Lindemann has put up for sale five non-fungible tokens (NFTs), the most expensive of which has a price tag of €100,000. The NFTill collection contains a video clip of his performance of the popular Russian patriotic ballad “Beloved Town” which was shot in May. The world-famous museum in Saint Petersburg allowed Lindemann to record the video as part of the Year of Germany in the Russian Federation which started in August 2020.

However, museum officials did not appreciate Lindemann’s NFT initiative, Forklog reported. In a statement released on Facebook, the Hermitage stressed that the use of images of objects from the museum’s exhibitions and interiors in the token collection labeled ‘Hermitage Edition’ “was not and could not have been agreed with the museum.”

It also said Mr. Lindemann was sent a warning notice regarding the violation of the museum’s licensing policy with his NFT project. No response has been received from the German singer so far and the tokens have already been offered for sale online.

The Hermitage further pointed out that it’s probably among the first such institutions in the world to have faced an unfair use of its exhibits in the NFT field. It also remarked that Mr. Lindemann had personally signed an agreement with the museum clearly stating the permission to use images and any other materials from the Hermitage applies exclusively to the music video.

In July, the museum itself announced it was considering issuing NFTs for works of art from its rich collections and was in talks with crypto exchange Binance which had just launched its NFT marketplace. The Hermitage plans to hold its first art exhibition of non-fungible tokens by the end of this year. Its management expects the tokens to bring additional funding and hopes NFTs will be exempted from the current Russian regulations on digital assets.

Rammstein is a Neue Deutsche Härte (NDH) band established in Berlin in 1994, which became world-famous with its industrial metal and rock music that produced hits such as “Du Hast,” “Engel,” and “Amerika.” Till Lindemann has been writing the lyrics and singing the songs as the lead vocalist of Rammstein since its formation.