Photo Credit: M&Ms
Universal Music Group’s Bored Ape band KINGSHIP is getting printed on limited edition M&M’s.
KINGSHIP, the Bored Ape NFT supergroup signed to Universal Music Group, has announced they will appear on limited edition boxes of M&M’s to honor the candy’s place in rock n’ roll mythology. The band, which consists of Bored Apes Captain, KING, Arnell, Hud, and 10:22PM, says they always include M&M’s candies in all colors in their required backstage items as an homage to other bands who have done the same.
For decades, music critics have debated the rationale behind certain artists’ backstage demands. Van Halen’s tour rider in the 80s — when the band was the most extensive touring show in the industry — famously requested a bowl of M&M’s with the brown candies removed. Some critics chalked it up to rock n’ roll extravagance.
Still, former Van Halen singer David Lee Roth has explained the rider’s importance; if a venue ignored the request for something as benign as M&M’s colors, then certainly the intricacies of setting up the stage for the show had gone overlooked.
Regardless, the mythology of M&M’s in the background of musician’s tour riders has prevailed. KINGSHIP pays homage to the candies’ legacy with the partnership, which is only available for a limited time. Only 4,000 units have been created in total.
The Gold edition — the rarest version — featuring a white and gold foil gift box and custom-printed candies with the group’s Bored Ape portraits in individually numbered boxes. M&M’s will only produce 3,900 of the exclusive boxes in brown as a nod to Van Halen, while 6,000 gift jars of the candies are available to order now for fans in the US.
“KINGSHIP is a group dedicated to the art of storytelling, so it was a great opportunity for us to pay (both) homage to rock n’ roll history and one of the greatest bands of all time but also create a unique fan experience for those that have joined this community at the start of their jouney,” says 10:22PM founder and KINGSHIP creator, Celine Joshua. “We are grateful to Mars and the team at M&M’s for this incredible partnership to help introduce KINGSHIP and NFT culture to the masses, alongside M&M’s, a true icon of pop culture.”