Snoop Dogg Sells $12M Worth of NFTs in 30 Minutes on Telegram

Rapper Snoop Dogg sold 996,000 NFTs on Telegram's TON blockchain on July 9, generating $12 million in primary sales within 30 minutes. The collection sold out completely during the brief window.

The “Gifts” collection featured animated images including vintage cars, swag bags, digital dogs and marijuana-themed objects. Users can display these items on their Telegram profiles or convert them into the platform's Stars currency.

Telegram founder Pavel Durov announced that blockchain minting and secondary market trading will begin in 21 days. The rapper released a new track and music video titled “Gifts” alongside the NFT drop, showcasing the available collectibles.

The rapid sellout contrasts sharply with broader NFT market performance. Trading volumes dropped 61% in Q1 2025 to $1.5 billion, down from $4.1 billion in Q1 2024. Sales over the past 30 days fell 41% to $403 million, while transactions decreased more than 55%, according to CryptoSlam data.

Zenith, the NFT lead at TON, commented that while Telegram Gifts have existed since January's “Plush Pepe” drop, Snoop Dogg's celebrity-led launch “could be the start of a new NFT narrative,” though added it “technically could not mean anything.”

Snoop Dogg entered the NFT space in 2021 and has maintained consistent activity since. In June 2023, he launched the Snoop Dogg Passport Series offering holders exclusive behind-the-scenes content. Earlier, in February 2022, he partnered with The Sandbox metaverse platform to release the Doggies NFT collection.

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The collaboration represents one of the larger celebrity NFT launches on Telegram's platform. Social media users called the partnership “legendary” and viewed the quick sellout as positive news for the struggling NFT market, which faced declining interest and trading activity throughout 2024 and early 2025.