Metabeats

Mockup screenshots found on the website. It appears to show two different Crazy Frog NFTs.

Metabeats is an NFT platform dedicated to music-related projects, created by Ali Rafi, Shafi Rafi and Henrik Uhlmann, presumably in partnership with Kaktus Film. The website was discovered soon before Tricky released on Twitter, and was officially announced alongside the release of Tricky on YouTube. An NFT collection of Crazy Frog was set for release on this platform.

Due to the controversial nature of NFTs, the website sparked major controversy among fans of Crazy Frog. This has caused a delay in the release of the tokens, originally being slated for release on December 23, 2021.

As of currently, the release of the official NFTs has been postponed indefinitely.

Website

Astronaut render on the website. Possibly one of the NFTs.

Metabeats claims to be the "home of music NFTs," where artists and fans can interact through official NFTs. The goal behind Metabeats appears to be to prevent bootleg NFTs from being mistaken as official tokens (the announcement of Metabeats came after two Crazy Frog scam tokens were shut down, Crazy Frog Token and Crazy Frog Coin).

They market themselves as an "NFT marketplace and digital reality platform that combines social media, online gaming, augmented reality, virtual reality, and cryptocurrencies to allow users to interact virtually."

The Crazy Frog NFT collection is said to "unlock the door of the Crazy Frog metabeats home." This would mean gaining access to Crazy Frog in the "metaverse," such as virtual concerts.

Roadmap

Notably, the website mentions that after the Crazy Frog token launch in Q1 2022, a Gummibär token would drop in Q2. However, the website calls him "Gummy Bear." "Another exclusive" is set to be announced in Q3.

They also mention an "upgrade V2" for Q3, and "upgrade V3" for Q4. V2 would add augmented reality function to the NFTs and "bring new features" to the Metabeats metaverse. V3 teases a "VR Arena" which will host Crazy Frog's first virtual concert to a global audience.

Delays

It appears that after the controversy surrounding the NFTs (see below), they were delayed. Originally, the release date was set to be about two weeks after the December 10 release of Tricky, on December 23. The other events listed on the "roadmap" also had definite dates. Some time between the turn of the new year, all dates on the website were changed to vague fiscal quarters, with the release of the Crazy Frog NFTs being set to "Q1."

Despite the page still saying "coming soon" and the passage of Q1 2022, the NFTs have yet to release. It could be possible that "Q1" could refer to Q1 2023. Given the cryptocurrency crash circa Q1 2022, as well as the controversy surrounding Crazy Frog's NFTs, it's very unlikely they will be released soon.

Circa November 2023, the page was quietly updated, removing all mentions of Crazy Frog, going to a generic "coming soon" page. Despite this, as of currently, the official website still lists Metabeats as a "metaverse verified partner."

A meme that was spammed on the Twitter account replies.

Original tweet by Crazy Frog to address NFT controversy.

Controversy

More information: see @TrueCrazyFrog

Before the website was officially announced on Crazy Frog's social media, Twitter users part of the Gummibär fandom found the website, finding that it teases a drop of Gummibär and Crazy Frog NFTs.

After the release of Tricky, people noticed that the NFT page was listed in the video description. Many people began questioning the Twitter account about the NFTs and unfollowing, accusing the return of Crazy Frog only to shill NFTs. The account posted an explanation of the NFTs, causing more outrage. This explanation included an email that concerned users could write to, which received several death threats. This prompted a Twitter thread, later deleted, asking to stop receiving death threats.

This tweet the account liked that spread, stating that the social media team didn't want to do NFTs but were "forced" to.

Over the course of the controversy, the admins on the Discord server created a thread about the NFTs. Some screenshots were taken out of context, including one notable on which calls BenCF the "creator" of Crazy Frog. Another shared sentiment was that the social media team was being "held hostage" by the "evil producer."

Over time, outrage over the NFTs has settled, but the Twitter account lost over 10,000 followers over the ordeal. Most of the controversy tweets were deleted.