The Family of Ken Kragen Teams with Cosmic Wire and OneOf to Release Hands for Humanity - The NFT Collection

News provided by

Apr 22, 2022, 08:00 ET

Kragen Known as a Major Force Behind 'We Are The World' and 'Hands Across America'

LOS ANGELES, April 22, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Ken Kragen (1936-2021) was known as a legendary entertainment manager, producer, philanthropist and as a creator of some of the largest charity efforts in history including "We Are the World'' and "Hands Across America." The Ken Kragen Estate has teamed up with Web3 technology leaders Cosmic Wire and green NFT platform OneOf to announce on Earthday the launch of Hands For Humanity - the NFT collection.

This project was the brainchild of Cosmic Wire CEO, Jerad Finck and Ken Kragen before his passing. As Kragen's final gift of philanthropy, a portion of all proceeds will be shared amongst the Ken Kragen Foundation, UNICEF Ukraine, WhyHunger, F Cancer / Generaize, NRDC (Natural Resources Defense Council) and Ocean Conservancy.

In 2019, Kragen was asked by BuzzFeed if he could envision a reprise of Hands Across America. At the time he said he couldn't. People would be too busy documenting their participation with selfies to actually hold hands. Hands for Humanity has worked to find a way.

The NFTs will be limited to 10,000 pieces and depict two joined hands. They will feature a variety of designs portraying what it means to be part of the human family. The entire collection will be offered on the green NFT platform OneOf, co-founded by tech entrepreneur Lin Dai, digital media executive Joshua James, and music industry veteran Adam Fell, in partnership with one of Kragen's original collaborators, the legendary music industry icon Quincy Jones and Quincy Jones Productions.

Designs will be offered from celebrities, marquee artists, studios influencers - including some of the original "We Are the World" artists and participants from around the world. Those wishing to participate are also invited to submit their original designs to be considered for inclusion in the collection.

"My husband Ken was originally inspired by his client, singer/songwriter Harry Chapin to work hard on solutions for world hunger, and I was right by his side all during the creation of We are The World, Hands Across America and Live Aid and we were able to see major changes to pop culture and philanthropy. Today is not only Earthday but would have been our 44th wedding anniversary - and we are very pleased to be able to announce this news on this very special day. Ken made a lasting contribution to this world, and we want to continue his efforts," said Cathy Worthington.

The Hands for Humanity NFT collectible will also provide special access to the Ken Kragen Memorial Metaverse featuring items from his entire career. Inspired by his love and vision for the world, the Metaverse will not only continue to raise funds for initiatives held as important to Kragen but will also spread his messages of hope for generations to come.

"My dad was a huge proponent for technology and NFTs. The combination of technology, philanthropy, and artistry is perfectly fitting to honor his legacy. We look forward to continuing his climate change advocacy work through the launch of these new NFTs and metaverse," said Emma Kragen.

For more information on the project, or to sign up to be a contributing artist, please visit www.handsforhumanity.io.

Images for Media Use can be found here:

About Ken Kragen
Ken Kragen is perhaps best known as a major creative force behind 'We Are The World' and 'Hands Across America'. Kragen was also the founding president of 'USA for Africa,' the foundation set up to administer the aid money raised by 'We Are the World,' which has raised more than $100 million to alleviate poverty and continues to raise money to this day for this important cause.

Kragen was also a television producer and an artist manager for entertainers that included the Bee Gees, Lionel Richie, the Smothers Brothers, Travis Tritt, Olivia Newton-John, Kenny Rogers, and Trisha Yearwood. Kragen and actress Cathy Worthington had been married since 1978.

About OneOf
Deeply committed to a sustainable blockchain future, OneOf is a NFT platform that supports NFTs on multiple energy-efficient blockchains, to create sustainable, creator-and-fan-friendly experiences. Minting a NFT on OneOf's platform uses up to over 2 million times less energy than proof-of-work networks, and for its artist and brand partners, minting NFTs costs $0 in blockchain transaction fees. OneOf aims to bring the next 100 million non-crypto-native fans into Web3 by removing the technical frictions and allowing fans to pay for their NFTs with credit/debit cards as well as major cryptocurrencies. Committed to diversity, over 80% of the collections featured on OneOf comes from minority or female creators. In addition, OneOf donates portions of proceeds from every NFT collection to its artist or athlete partner's preferred charity.

About Cosmic Wire:
Based in Los Angeles with offices in Dubai, Cosmic Wire is a platform agnostic Web3 entertainment technology company that offers brands, celebrities, artists, and IP collectors the ability to enhance, promote, license, and sell their work. Cosmic Wire expands the value of iconic physical and digital assets using tools such as blockchain, NFTs, and immersive experiences. Staffed by some of the very best in the industry, Cosmic Wire's completely internalized development, marketing, and sales teams support clients from concept to close. Cosmic Wire believes that a proper client contract provides a shared experience of success for Cosmic Wire and their clients so that Cosmic Wire succeeds when their clients do.

Cosmic Wire is also the parent company of ArtsGalore. ArtsGalore brings artists, content creators and customers together for unique and premium NFT and Metaverse collections.

Website: https://www.cosmicwire.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cosmicwire
Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/cosmicwireinc
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cosmicwireinc
Discord: https://discord.gg/cosmicwire

Press Contact:
PR Representatives for Cosmic Wire
Rubenstein Public Relations
Alan Wallace
Email: [email protected]
Phone: +1 212-805-3019

SOURCE Cosmic Wire