Benjamin James is the founder of Ziggy Ziggy, a music brand that celebrates on-chain music culture – named after one Ziggy Stardust. He’s also a writer for Billboard and a former artist and producer. James used to run a small record label in the north of the UK, where he joined forces with a brother-sister combo of vocalists and started a group called Mausi. Together they built a career as artists, touring with big names like Charli XCX and Rudimental before succumbing to the suppressive power of a major label.

We chatted about the incredible highs and lows of that journey, getting his eyes opened to a flawed music industry, and finding hope in on-chain music culture and technology.