World-Renowned Former Senior Artist at Rockstar Games Partners With Household Names In Fashion & Music To Bring Fans a New Dysfunctional Universe - Fear City Stephen Bliss’ Fear City is a 20 year culmination of everything that is quintessentially New York, with 9,999 unique avatars, a dedicated soundtrack, and an iconic streetwear fashion line Stephen Bliss, former senior artist at Rockstar Games, is announcing the release of his first-ever NFT art collection, Fear City.
Bliss and his team have partnered with Jeff Staple, the designer behind Staple Pigeon & Stapleverse, Solomon Sounds, producer at Capitol Records, and INSA, the artist behind AR app, Gif-iti, to curate an original soundtrack and fashion line that authentically encompass the culture of New York, where Fear City is based. Elements of the fictional world will live virtually on the blockchain and in the metaverse, as well as in the physical world through live events and exclusive merchandise.
“I’ve been creating this universe and cast of characters with their own unique narratives in my spare time for decades. When I first started making these characters it was for my own entertainment, and sometimes I’d paint them over abstract compositions on canvas, but there’s no way I could have imagined they’d function within something like a Metaverse. Blockchain technology & NFTs have facilitated my characters’ Frankenstein-like birth into a limitless utilitarian universe, bringing them to life in ways that were previously unattainable.”
NEW YORK | May 20, 2022 “NFTs have rewritten the rulebook when it comes to ownership for artists and how they connect and collaborate with fans. The opportunity to release Fear City on the blockchain is far beyond anything that I could have envisioned.” Bliss designed Fear City in five phases so fans will have the opportunity to collaborate on the project and connect more intimately with Bliss’ larger cultural vision.
Phase one will unlock the gateway to the universe, followed by phase two, which will introduce the initial six characters with a limited edition comic. Phase two will also reveal the universe’s custom album, with songs handpicked by Capitol Records’ Solomon Sounds and the theme song from Fear City by rapper Johnny Smoke. Fans will receive surprise airdrops, teasing out more of the Fear City storyline. In phase three, Bliss and his team will bring Fear City to the physical world with in-person events and activations, as well as more music. Bliss will also bring in new creative partners to help dictate the direction Fear City will go, leveraging fan feedback. In phase four, Bliss will bring Fear City to the metaverse and transition it into an on-chain game integrated with physical locations. In phase five, Fear City will reimagine how all creators can collaborate in its universe and the larger world of Web 3.
I’m proud to have been part of an amazing company like Rockstar, but Fear City is the pinnacle of my career.
Fear City Characters: The 9,999 avatars in Fear City are inspired by six key characters with 250 traits that Bliss has created over the past 20 years.
Iconic Streetwear Fashion Line: Acclaimed designer and sneakerhead behind Staple Pigeon & Stapleverese, Jeff Staple, has curated a physical and digital streetwear fashion line that aligns with Bliss’ vision for the universe.
Dedicated Music Album: Capitol Records’ Solomon Sounds worked closely with artists to curate a soundtrack inspired by the characters and larger world that is Fear City.
Limited-Edition Jacket: INSA, the artist behind the AR app, Gif-iti, has designed a limited-edition jacket for Barb, the dysfunctional Mayor of Fear City. Physical and digital copies will be available.
New York City Mural: Bliss and INSA collaborated to paint a mural incorporating elements of Fear City on Mott St. in SoHo, New York City. The mural animates in Augmented Reality through the lens of smartphones, revealing a surprise message. Phase one of Fear City will launch on June 3, 2022, unlocking the gateway to the universe on Ethereum, with a supply 9,999 state of the art NFTs.
For more information, please visit: fearcity.io.
About Stephen Bliss
Stephen Bliss started his career working as an in-house designer with Japanese urban fashion streetwear pioneers, Hysteric Glamour. After 4 years, he returned to London and established himself as a freelance illustrator, focusing on writing and painting detailed comic strips, with a fusion of Japanese and Western cultures, for both underground and mainstream publications. In the late 90s, he started to focus on his own personal fine artwork, which he returned to after 16 years at Rockstar Games as Senior Artist.
At Rockstar Games he truly made a name for himself in the gaming industry and the art world. During his stint here, he defined the look, feel and positioning of the gaming mega-franchise Grand Theft Auto, and also created works for games including The Warriors, LA Noire and Red Dead Redemption. He went on to head up their Lifestyle Branding department, helping reinforce Rockstar’s reputation as a creative powerhouse
About Fear City Fear City is a collection of 9,999 NFTs - hand painted avatars - generated from 6 characters and 250+ different traits. The main protagonists live in a narrative centered around a bankrupt and burning New York City. Female biker gangs, slum lords and ladies, cops, politicians, Masons, revolutionaries, religious nuts, domestic terrorists, artists and punks (and the occasional celebrity) make up a cast of seventy (more to come) miscreants creating havoc in their very own patch of prime unreal estate