Breaking Out of the Fiat Music Industry | Bitcoin 2026

All right, welcome everyone. Thanks for the coming to the panel here. The discussion here is breaking out of the fiat music industry and we're here with Is this a deep fake or is this is is Noah Groomman real? Let's let's >> Do you want to check? >> Okay, quick high five. >> Did it feel >> We've got Okay, we've got it. We had a little bit of an online controversy about this musical celebrity going through Noster and running through Maxi Madness. Um, but uh, in all seriousness, it's been an amazing week here, uh, meeting you, um, seeing some of these popup performances and these appearances that you've been making. Um, absolutely incredible. And, um, you know, I want to start here with, um, we're both from the traditional music space, from the venue side, from the performer side. This is not a music conference. Um, who are you and and what brings you here? What are what are you doing here? Why what why is this an attractive place for people like us to hang out? >> What a big question to start with. I'll start by introducing myself. My name is Noah Groomman. I am the singer of the progressive metal band Scardist. I'm also directing a choir, a metal choir called Hellscore. and I am also the lead singer and co and and orchestra conductor for the legendary orchestra by Sabaton and I'm here to basically share my story as you know having an independent business in the music industry in the second most expensive country in the world where I come from which is Israel um and you know let's let's talk about how you know what does this have to do with Bitcoin at all and what is Fiat music to me. >> Yeah. And you know, from my perspective, um it's really never been harder out there for independent music. Um right now the industry is going through a lot of change, a lot of disruption, a lot of consolidation. Um but before we get into all that, I want to hear just about your story. How did you come up as a musician? And um tell me a bit about your your background. So I I grew up um I was born into a musical house. Both my parents are big mi music enthusiasts. So it's not their main profession, but they it's something they they've always loved. So I was raised, you know, with music all around me. I've always sang and played um musical instruments. So when I was five, I told my mom that I'm going to be a musician now. She said, "Um, yeah, music is awesome. You should definitely do it, but it's not a real profession, right?" So, over the years, I've tried, you know, many different things, and I was actually uh I found myself practicing as a fashion designer, but um I was always drawn back into music. So in my early 20s I just you know I just realized you know the fashion design can just be you know me designing my stage outfits basically and will stay there because I have to be a musician and this is where I basically became a music maxi >> which is you know how I call it today. >> Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. So you mentioned you grew up in Israel and and your childhood um was shaped by a lot of your experience there. Say a little bit more about that and your um how that affected your music and your career and your philosophy. >> Yeah. So I think both the financial struggle which is real, it is the second most expensive country in the world, but also you know the political climate and being cancelled, boycott um from all different directions just for being born which is insane as an you know especially as a musician. um I think made me a better musician because it kind of forces me to work 100 times harder. So, so yeah. So, I I found myself, you know, ditching everything I was doing before and just focusing on music. I was, you know, I back to my early 20s, I was waiting tables. I ditched that. And of course it kind of I found myself as a young adult uh with a big hole in my bank account. Um not even able to pay rent at the end of the month. But I felt like this is something I have to do. I have to commit to this because I believed that it will be worth it. I really believed in in what I have to give to this world music. Um and I knew it was never a doubt. So I never I was never scared to just you know take this and people say take this leap of faith or gamble. I don't see it this way. I see it as seeing something understanding that this is what this is the the cards I have in my hands now will work my you know it will be a good game no matter what right so so yeah so I left everything else only focusing on music um moving forward couple of years you know with this big hole in my bank account I managed to get on my two feet as they say and established myself as a leading voice teacher in Israel. Uh especially in the metal kind of extreme vocals kind of world. Um but um and I I was doing pretty well at that point. This was a few years into that. I was doing pretty well, but I felt like something is not working to me financially. Not because I wasn't earning enough money, but because, you know, I teach maybe one hour for each student and I get paid essentially less than what I was than what I was paid the year before because the money is worth less. So, it's like, how did this make sense at all? So this is the point where it kind of clicked to me something in this system is not working. Something is broken. >> Yeah. Right. >> It it sounds like you had a perfect primer. The the the circumstances were in place for you to really be looking for a solution, looking for a an answer to relieve some of that that tension. you described it as um a cycle of financial struggle of just constantly just getting to the next day, getting to the next day. Um how did you find Bitcoin and and and what's what's your story of incorporating that? >> Yeah, I mean like like you said, I I see so many incredible musicians just stuck in this cycle. So for me it was like okay realizing that this system is broken something is not working. Um I knew about Bitcoin um talking I don't know 10 years ago. I knew about Bitcoin from early on but I didn't want to do anything I knew I don't know enough about and I didn't have the right people around me to kind of um explain it to me. So at this point I was not yet um you know there but um I did start my choir healthcore because I understood that I don't want to get paid per hour because time is the most valuable asset. I didn't want to get paid for my time. I would rather get paid for my skills and experience. So I've decided to start a project rather than to you know work by the hour. So this is how healthcore was born. And a few years later um I met the right people and this is when it it clicked. Okay, this gives an answer. >> Was there anything in particular that just hit you that that just clicked that you said, "Okay, I'm I'm ready now." >> Yeah, because I like I said, I knew about Bitcoin, but it was not until I it was it was proven to me that you can't print more. That was the moment. Okay. >> Yeah, >> that's it then. >> Yeah, you're protected. >> Yeah, it gives confidence. Well said. Well said. And that's a great transition with the >> the the title of the panel here being called fiat music. That that term might not make a whole lot of sense to some people outside of these rooms. Um some people here probably understand it, but generally speaking, you you talk to folks out in public and you you ask them about their thoughts on the music industry and they're going to have opinions. They're going to have, you know, they're going to go on a Live Nation rant or a ticketmaster rant or cancel Spotify. Um, everybody has their ideas of the of their version of the problem, but the term fiat music, the way we're describing it, sounds, it seems like it's getting at something deeper, like it's uh these are symptoms of of fiat music, having these having these existing problems that we're playing whack-a-ole with. Um, how would you describe fiat music and and life within it as an artist? >> Yeah. So, I'm not even gonna talk about the whole industry because I feel a little bit like we're kind of focused a little bit on the wrong thing here with all the criticism. I personally, as an artist, I am signed to a record label. We do have a deal with a distribution company and thank God for them. I mean, they deserve their cut because they distribute my my music all over the world. I can't do it myself. I need them, you know. So, I feel like this is a healthy collaboration and I have nothing to say against it. Um, also like, you know, there is a lot of criticism over out there, but I would rather focus on what I can do as a musician, as an individual. And this is more a matter of mindset >> rather than just protesting against a big company, you know. So, I'll I'll give you an example because we were talking about uh being stuck in this survival cycle because musicians, you know, it's it's a very competitive world out there and it's not easy to get good paying gigs, especially if you're young. So, you know, people have to pay rent at the end of the month. How do they do that? I mean, they can't just leave everything. Like, they can and they should, but it's it's hard for people to to make this switch. Um, so what they end up doing, and this is like one of the best musicians I know, he got uh an incredible gig abroad. So, an incredible uh tour, not not one gig, a whole bunch of gigs. And his first instinct was, "Okay, now I have to get a second job as a waiter so I can pay for my flight ticket." Now, to me, it's like he would rather spend his weekend waiting tables rather than practice his instrument. The way I see it, if he practices his instrument, he will be better on stage, he will get better gig opportunities in the future. He will get paid more money in the future. And then he will be able to pay for this flight ticket and more. And this is just looking maybe one year ahead. Now let's try to look five years ahead or 10 years ahead. So I guess fiat music to me is this narrowminded vision of just seeing how do I survive this month or this flight ticket and not really thinking where can I be in five years in 10 years. >> Oh that's uh spot on. I um in the venue space, I worry about the ability of of artists like that to go out on the road. Um if you've got a venue of 500 cap room, the the numbers just aren't going to add up with these costs going the way they are. And um it it's heartbreaking. Um but let's get back to you. I want to hear about Noah. um with you know with this backdrop of the current state of music and um costs going crazy um how has Bitcoin specifically affected your career and driven your decisions? >> So I think it's first and foremost the philosophy and uh the mindset it gives you confidence. it kind of because I know that my Bitcoin will never lose its value. You know, it gives you confidence but also there is practical things you can do. So, I mean just starting out whenever well whenever I was starting out um if I get like an unexpected I call it an unexpected like bonus put it into Bitcoin. You can buy Bitcoin with $100 if you wanted to. >> You don't have to buy a whole Bitcoin. Yeah. >> Mind-blowing, right? Okay. >> Concept. So, you know, you can start out super small and what's the worst thing that could happen, right? Uh, but then, you know, there is Noster, for example. So, starting out on Auster, I started out with just doing live streams and I call them live voice practice or like live voice practice for my upcoming tour or something like that. And then I just go through my repertoire or if I don't have an upcoming tour, I just practice my vocals randomly or sing random songs. The act of turning on the camera and the microphone by itself gives me a boost of motivation every single time. And it doesn't matter if one person watches or 50 people are there commenting and all that. It doesn't matter. The fact that I'm there is already a huge motivation boost and then as a bonus you get zaps which is just awesome by itself. Now we're my band and myself we are on all the social media platforms. Whenever we post anything on Instagram we just copy paste it into Noster. So Noster has all our content and then we can get zaps for it which is just incredible because it it gives the audience the ability to support artists. >> It it it is incredible. Um and it it brings up um that story brings up an interesting issue that we've talked about in this community a lot about you know this the technology is there. This is superior. This is a superior solution to the platforms that are being used right now. U we could go on and on about the halfozen big problems that are solving, but right now we have this um chicken or the egg problem, so to speak, of do the do the huge artists come in and drag their fans with them or do the people who are here have to support the artists that are here. And how do we get those favorable results so that we can get the flywheel going and really really show off all the things that that take place without getting up on a, you know, a soap box and evangelizing about, you know, all of the tech features. Um, we really need to, you know, do things like your your your 247 stream. We got to make this look cool. Use this for purposes that attract more people. Um, >> what what what do you think musicians should expect? Like if there's a musician sitting out here watching, uh, maybe they're getting at least interested or open to the idea of putting some stuff out there on Noster. Um, what would they expect when they came on board? >> Yeah. So, as a um, as a signed band, it we do have this problem because we can't really we have a deal with the distribution company. We can't really put our music um on on nost um yet we we revolution takes time and I do believe that down the line we should be able to find a solution to that but until this happens I mean just yesterday we streamed a live music event here >> which was amazing by the way and thank you for Right. >> Thank you. >> And um and where where where people could directly support the artist on stage and any artist can do that. Any artist can go on Tunster and stream their concerts. So do that. And then like I said, copy paste whatever content you put on Instagram and Facebook and all that. Put it on Auster. What do you have to lose? Like you you'll get zaps for it. So it's it's it's in it gives the audience the opportunity to support you directly. So you don't necessarily have to put your album on fountain. >> There is other ways to do that. And then there is the practice sessions. which are just a fun casual thing that every everyone wins I think. So there is no no downside to it. >> Yeah. I I love the way you described it over coffee earlier where you just say it it's low risk high reward. Why? >> That's it. >> Yeah. >> Like what are you going to lose? There's nobody even collecting your identity. You're you have no barrier to entry. Spin up a key pair in a client. And um and the other really powerful thing that you've you've been shining a light on is this is a way to get Bitcoin by earning. You don't have to link your bank account. You don't have to, you know, give your credentials to Plaid and then blah blah blah blah blah and wonder what this custod you know random people will just see your content and give you Bitcoin and you have it in your custody and nobody else. And that that's a very profound concept that um also really changes your relationship with this space. >> Yeah, >> you can study Bitcoin and every I think most people who are here um once you have it in your possession, you go deeper and you study it and then you start to learn about all of the different things it's capable of and it's not just, you know, crypto scam number go up investment scheming. So um >> one thing I wanted to add about about that because a lot of musicians I know they say okay well there is no one is on Noster or all the Noster people are just techy nerdy guys nobody cares about music blah blah blah first of all it's not true there is more and more artists coming into the space but also revolution takes time so if you want to be a part of something truly special and real and a part of the future. You should check it out. You should give it a chance. >> Yeah. Right. So, so here we are. We're sitting in a room here. Um, we're at the Bitcoin conference. So, presumably most of you get it, right? Most of you understand what we're talking about, but we're also talking to the people online, our peers from the music industry who might get this link shared to them later. um you know what are some action items here for people in the room that that our peers and that you as a touring artist would ask for how how can they support you here in the room? So I I'm also a content consumer myself and whenever there is an artist I I'd like to support um I mean on Noster there is Zaps. Outside of Noster there is Patreon. So I support artists I I'd like to see grow. I support them on Patreon by just, you know, because I know that if I support them, it will help them to keep going and to keep producing more content that I love to consume. So, um, support your artists. Just support them because it would help them make more content that you love to consume. So, it's as simple as that. Zap. Just zap. Um, yeah. I mean, yeah. And, um, and for all the developers out there, I don't know, uh, if there is any equivalent to Patreon yet on Noster, but, that would be something truly incredible to have on >> Noster. Yeah. Amen. and I'm I'm excited to see all of the activity in the music space. So, I'm confident someone's going to be working on that now. So, um, >> welcome to Predict. The world is a market. Everything is a market. Every headline moves the line. Every moment is your market. Call the moves. Bet on your instinct, your prediction, your edge. dual bits predict where everything is a market. >> The the zapping that that was one of the things that I was um feeling very hopeful for and and felt a lot of promise at at some of the events here around the conference. We have these screens set up where people are zapping the people on stage live and at the concert last night zapping live and um it it seems to be newer new names like new names are popping up this week that we hadn't seen before in significant numbers and and and I think my call to action is always um if you want to see something change you know vote vote with your wallet, vote with your feet. A lot of us talk about this stuff and and want to see these changes, but um make sure we check our actions and participate. >> Yeah, 100%. And I I forgot to mention earlier, but you know uh we have in incorporated Bitcoin at our merch shop as well. So, it's not just on Noster, but um if you go on this Cardest website, which is Cardest.co, co um you'll be able to support us uh by buying merch. Lav says no because our nodes just died, but we will fix it in a few days and then you'll be able to do that. So few days and then you'll able you'll be able to do that. >> Um so we've just got a couple minutes left here, but I got to ask you, you know, Bitcoin's misunderstood. Noster small niche. Um, both of these represent solutions and principles that that we all think are important and and want to support and participate in. How do you navigate this with with, you know, the normal person in the music industry? >> Yeah. >> And and how do you talk about it? >> So, I don't actively orange pill or purple pill anyone unless they ask me to because I don't hide it. It's out there. Uh when I write lyrics, it's in the lyrics. Um not I don't shout Bitcoin in my songs, but I talk about individualism and and all that. Uh we have recently like last year, we released a music video telling the story about Satoshi. So if you want to check it out, it's called RIP RIP Scardust. And um you know whenever we live stream so we put it on both YouTube and Noster but we encourage people to go on Noster because we say and you know on YouTube we have 2,000 views on Noster we have like 20 but we tell the people on YouTube if you want to directly support us go on Noster you'll be able to support. So it's it's gentle. It's It's gentle, but it's there. And whoever wants to learn more is always welcome to come and talk to us. >> Yep. That's great. I love it. Um, in closing, what would you if you were to just a a nextgen musician sitting out here, what would you say next first thing first thing you'd say to them about this space? >> Well, first of all, I would say you have something amazing in your hands. Commit to it. That that would be my number one advice. >> The the music maximalist that you talked about. Music maximist. I love it. I love it. Bitcoin is a tool. Be a music maximalist. Um lastly, where can people find you? What what's uh what's cooking for Stardust? >> Yeah. So, I I'm all over the platforms like the Instagram, Facebook, Meta, YouTube, but also all over Noster. You can find me at no one word like this, but one word. And my band Stardust is also all over Noster and the normal uh social media and you can check out our website scardest.co which has links to all of that and where you can also watch all our videos. So >> excellent. Well, thanks for being up here with me. This was a lot of fun. >> Thank you so much. Likewise. Yeah. Every year this community comes together to celebrate, to debate, to build what comes next. And every year the stage gets bigger. Sound money center stage. So where do you go to celebrate the next chapter in Bitcoin history? You come home. Nashville, July 2027.