Which Chinese-speaking celebrities who jumped into Web3 actually understand it?
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Which Chinese-speaking celebrities who jumped into Web3 actually understand it?
Following Jay Chou and Yi Nengjing, Web3 welcomes a new celebrity entrant—Stephen Chow.
Navigating Web3 tides with focused insightsAuthor: Runsheng, ChainCatcher
Following in the footsteps of Jay Chou and Qing Yingjing, Web3 has welcomed a new celebrity entrant—Stephen Chow. On October 18, Stephen Chow launched an Instagram account and posted a recruitment message for Web3 talent: "Searching in the dark for outstanding Web3 talents to help me build a creative future," stating he would personally select candidates. The announcement immediately sparked widespread discussion within the industry.
Chow’s entry into Web3 was foreshadowed months earlier when he participated in an AMA event hosted by Hong Kong creative studio FWENCLUB, where he shared his views on NFTs, blockchain, and the metaverse: "The films I make are, to some extent, already concepts of the metaverse. Today's metaverse integrates technologies like NFTs and blockchain, which I believe will become a new model."
However, compared to other celebrities who entered earlier, Uncle Stephen is somewhat late. Among Chinese-speaking celebrities alone, figures such as Jay Chou, Qing Yingjing, JJ Lin, Shawn Yue, Derek Yee, and Xu Jinglei have long showcased their NFT holdings on social media—many of which are highly valuable. Take Xu Jinglei, for example: her OpenSea profile shows she entered the space back in July 2021 and now owns 1,000 NFTs, including five Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) NFTs worth 186.1 ETH.
When did celebrities begin flocking to Web3? By reviewing public information, ChainCatcher found that sports stars were the first to embrace NFTs. As early as 2019, the National Basketball Players Association partnered with Dapper Labs to launch NBA Top Shot, turning highlight clips of NBA players into NFTs for sale. Afterward, entertainment celebrities began entering the space—either purchasing prominent NFT projects or launching their own endorsed NFT series.
So how do celebrities typically enter Web3?
ChainCatcher’s analysis reveals that NFTs are the preferred gateway for celebrities into the Web3 ecosystem. Previously, OKLink tracked the wallets of 18 celebrities including Jay Chou, JJ Lin, and Lu Han, publishing a report titled *“Celebrities Rush Into NFTs: Who Are the Real Gold Miners?”* It categorized celebrity engagement with NFTs into four models: “Newbie Phase: Simply promoting new projects,” “Investment Budding: Buying or receiving well-known NFTs,” “Getting Serious: Issuing and acquiring NFTs simultaneously,” and “Advanced Player: Mastering the NFT game.” Representative figures for these categories are Jay Chou, Chen Bolin, Justin Bieber, and JJ Lin, respectively.
Additionally, the metaverse is another major avenue through which celebrities engage with Web3. For instance, shortly after investing in NFTs, JJ Lin announced the purchase of three virtual land plots on Decentraland, marking his formal entry into the metaverse at an estimated cost of over $120,000.
The growing involvement of Chinese-speaking celebrities in Web3 reflects increasing recognition of its value and potential. Combined with NFTs’ ability to protect copyright and their intrinsic connection to art, marketing and investment incentives have driven many celebrities to adopt NFT profile pictures on social media and promote specific NFT collections.
ChainCatcher has compiled profiles of Jay Chou, Machi Big Brother, Shawn Yue, and others to examine how Chinese-speaking celebrities are engaging with Web3. Comparisons show varied levels of participation. While Web3 remains in its early stages—accompanied by policy and public opinion risks—most celebrities remain cautious despite having fan traffic. Only a few truly understand the business dynamics and actively convert their networks and fanbases into commercial value.
1. Jay Chou (Wallet Address)
As early as October 2021, Jay Chou collaborated with Vincent Fang to release a limited-edition collectible figure called “Punk Cat Sting” (Celadon Porcelain version), complete with an NFT anti-counterfeiting certificate—his earliest known interaction with NFTs. In January this year, his brand PHANTACi co-launched its first NFT project, “Phanta Bear,” and Jay Chou quickly changed his Instagram profile picture to a Phanta Bear NFT, saying he wanted to “switch my avatar for a few months to experience the metaverse.”
The Phanta Bear NFT series endorsed by Jay Chou
Later, singer Machi Big Brother announced gifting Jay Chou BAYC #3738; Edison Chen revealed plans to collaborate with Jay Chou on a joint NFT project before year-end; and Jay Chou’s esports company, Magic Cat Esports, filed applications to register metaverse-related trademarks.
In June, Jay Chou partnered with French football powerhouse Paris Saint-Germain to launch an NFT project called “Tiger Champs.”
In September, Jay Chou released a previously unreleased track from 18 years ago, “New York Subway,” along with four classic songs—“Sunny Day,” “Blue and White Porcelain,” “Beached,” and “Love Before the Common Era”—on the blockchain.
A steady stream of NFT collaborations and explorations reflect Jay Chou’s immense star power and genuine interest in Web3.
Take the Phanta Bear NFT series: though limited to 10,000 units at 0.26 ETH each, all sold out within 40 minutes, generating 62 million RMB in revenue.
However, as the OKLink report suggests, Jay Chou appears to still be in the “newbie phase,” primarily promoting new projects. According to wallet analysis, Jay Chou did not mint Phanta Bear directly but received it via transfer, indicating limited understanding of NFT mechanics.
As previously reported by ChainCatcher, on April Fool’s Day this year, Jay Chou announced on social media that his BAYC #3738 NFT had been stolen via a phishing site—just three months after acquiring it. His wallet, created in January 2022, shows key assets including BAYC #3738, Phanta Bear #10000, and ALIENEGRA X EDC No.13—all subsequently stolen.
Moreover, NFTGo data shows that the floor price of Phanta Bear—the NFT he personally promoted—peaked at 5.2 ETH on January 8, 2022, then steadily declined. It now sits at just 0.28 ETH, a drop of over 90%.
2. Machi Big Brother (Wallet Address)
Among Chinese-speaking celebrities in Web3, none have deeper roots than rapper Machi Big Brother.
After debuting with the hip-hop group Machi in 2003, Machi Big Brother aggressively expanded his business ventures. Starting in 2017, he spotted opportunities in the cryptocurrency ICO boom and transitioned into the crypto space, encountering NFTs by 2018.
In media interviews, he revealed that during the initial mint phase of BAYC in May 2021, he minted 120 BAYCs and later acquired 91 more.
To date, Machi Big Brother holds 53 BAYCs. On-chain data shows he bought BAYC #2087 for 42 ETH and sold it three months later for 769 ETH—a 17x return.
According to incomplete statistics by ChainCatcher, the Web3 entries of Kai Ko, Chen Bolin, JJ Lin, Jay Chou, and Xu Jinglei are all linked to him. The BAYC JJ Lin first publicly held was gifted by Machi Big Brother, as was Xu Jinglei’s. As mentioned earlier, in January this year, Machi Big Brother gifted Jay Chou BAYC #3738, which was stolen three months later.
In August, Machi Big Brother posted multiple tweets criticizing ApeCoin’s community governance and began selling off his BAYC, MAYC, and APE Token holdings. By September, he had completely liquidated his 800,000 APE tokens.
Machi Big Brother entered early, understands marketing, and is proficient in on-chain operations such as NFT issuance, airdrops, minting, and trading—making him a high-level player among celebrities and one who has reaped substantial rewards.
3. Shawn Yue (Wallet Address)
In September 2021, on his 40th birthday, Christie’s auctioned a curated collection of Shawn Yue’s personal treasures. Alongside physical collectibles, the auction included NFTs such as CryptoPunk #9997, BAYC #8746, and Meebit #6337. Notably, CryptoPunk #9997 sold for HK$33.85 million—up 24.6x from its original purchase price of 99.99 ETH. On January 14 this year, he tweeted a Frankenstein image with the caption “NFT coming soon.”
NFTGo data shows Shawn Yue currently holds NFTs valued at 745.37 ETH (about $1 million), totaling 262 NFTs. He has conducted 432 transactions, buying NFTs worth 794.84 ETH and selling for 1,110 ETH—generating approximately 963.56 ETH ($1.32 million) in profit.
NFTGo also reports that in the past three months, Yue completed 86 transactions—82 of which were receiving gifts, with only three actual purchases.
His NFT holdings include nine CryptoPunks, three MAYCs, six Meebits, and more. Alongside collecting, he has created eight original NFT artworks. He also uses NFTs like CryptoPunk as his social media avatar, signaling strong endorsement of their value.
As he once said in an interview: “It’s their uniqueness that fascinates me—each one is absolutely one-of-a-kind.”
4. Qing Yingjing (Unknown)
Qing Yingjing’s entry into Web3 is largely due to her son, Harrison Yu. Passionate about art and NFTs, Harrison co-founded the Web3 brand Theirsverse with artist friends—an ecosystem built on NFTs, virtual singers, art toys, and the metaverse, emphasizing gender diversity.
Theirsverse NFT series endorsed by Qing Yingjing
In July 2022, the Theirsverse NFT series officially launched, issuing 5,500 NFTs across nine collections. Each NFT consists of 8–10 independent layers. Project plans include physical and digital album releases, virtual idol concerts, art exhibitions, and metaverse integration.
From the outset, Qing Yingjing actively endorsed the project, promoting it publicly. In September, she visited Meta Space, a Web3-themed café in Beijing’s Wudaokou district, to promote the NFT. The promotional poster featured a famous scene from her husband Qin Hao’s drama: “Want to go mountain climbing? Web3.” Attendees confirmed to media that following her promotion, the price of Theirsverse NFTs surged sharply.
However, a subsequent price crash drew Qing Yingjing into controversy. NFTGo data shows the floor price dropped from 0.31 ETH at launch to 0.199 ETH. Social media screenshots reveal Qing Yingjing clarified she was merely a project ambassador, with no control over operations, pricing, or management.
Beyond endorsements, Qing Yingjing has actively engaged with Web3 by participating in Twitter Spaces, attending NFT.NYC events, and giving offline talks—sharing her views on leveraging celebrity IPs with NFTs. She once expressed her passion for Web3 on the Jike app: “After a lifetime of riding waves, managing traffic, building IPs, integrating resources, media outreach, and networking—I feel like everything I’ve learned can finally be dedicated to Web3.”
5. JJ Lin (Wallet Address)
On March 20, 2022, singer JJ Lin showcased a piece of jewelry featuring Bored Ape BAYC #3914 on social media, captioning it “Got my new passport to Web3.” His wallet shows ownership of 90 NFTs, including one BAYC, one CryptoPunk, and three Azukis—with a total market value exceeding 232 ETH (about $350,000).
Beyond using NFTs as avatars, JJ Lin publicly announced purchasing three virtual land plots on Decentraland to join the metaverse, spending around $123,000. However, NFTGo data shows the floor price of Decentraland NFTs has plummeted from 3.4 ETH when he bought them on March 14 to just 0.29 ETH today—a decline of over 90%.
Additionally, on-chain data reveals that in the past three months, his main activities include purchasing one NFT and minting ten—indicating strong ongoing interest in NFTs.
On September 28, at Asia’s largest Web3 offline event, “Singapore Token 2049,” attendees photographed JJ Lin participating in local Web3 activities—images that quickly spread across crypto communities. According to Forbes, JJ Lin is also collaborating on building a private NFT-based community.
Conclusion
According to ChainCatcher’s incomplete survey, beyond those highlighted above, other Chinese-speaking celebrities—including Xu Jinglei, Will Pan, Derek Yee, Lu Han, Chen Bolin, and Vanness Wu—have also joined the space. Some use NFTs as social media avatars, others deeply participate in NFT launches and promotions, while a few speculate and hoard assets, becoming early adopters.
Whether or not to be an early adopter is a personal choice. Media coverage highlights only those motivated by marketing and promotion. Given the anonymity of on-chain data, many celebrities likely participate quietly—details of which may only emerge in time.
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