Misunderstood genius or extremist? Interpreting the multifaceted life of the NFT "cult" Milady founder

Author: Pix

Compiled by: Wenser, Odaily Planet Daily

Editor’s Note: As the founder of the NFT series Milady, Charlotte Fang has garnered significant attention due to his controversial statements and multiple identities within the industry. Some say he has created a distinctive NFT cultural community through Milady; others believe he is a spokesperson for extreme ideologies. On June 13, the sale of the Meme coin CULT that he issued ended, raising a total of 5,861.8 ETH, but the project's official Twitter is currently in a routine maintenance state, and specific plans for the token issuance have yet to be announced.

This article introduces Charlotte Fang's past experiences, providing readers with a preliminary understanding of this figure known as the "NFT cult leader."

Charlotte Fang's Past: Rising from Humble Beginnings

He once personally established the largest NFT "cult" (due to the fervent emotions and Meme content exhibited by Milady community members, as well as their extreme admiration for Charlotte Fang), yet controversies and scandals related to him have been continuous. He was once scorned and even cursed by many in the industry for his extreme remarks, but recently, he still managed to raise over $20 million during the fundraising phase of the latest Meme coin project CULT. Here are many of his lesser-known stories:

The Past of a Serial Entrepreneur: The Milady Project Was Not His First "Startup"

Charlotte Fang (originally named Krishna Okhandiar) did not start with Remilio or Milady; his first project was an NFT similar to a Meme coin called Yayo (according to what he has revealed). However, this project had a very short lifespan. Later, he returned to his beloved "old profession"—the world of crypto art.

In August 2021, the Milady project was officially established, featuring a novel, cartoonish NFT series, and the project's roadmap had only one goal—to create a server similar to Minecraft. Surprisingly, this roadmap did indeed gain market favor.

Milady pixel-style Minecraft server

The NFT series quickly sold out and gradually expanded its ecosystem. By April 2022, the floor price of Milady rose to 1.55 ETH, entering the ranks of second-tier blue-chip NFTs. Just when everything seemed to be running smoothly, an unexpected event occurred.

Source of Controversy: Social Experiment Enthusiast or Extremist?

Before Charlotte Fang entered the crypto art field (and not just art), perhaps he had a fondness for certain bizarre performance arts? He referred to it as a "social experiment" called "Miya"—the protagonist being a virtual identity existing as a girl, whose Twitter account posted a large number of racist, homophobic, and white nationalist comments. In May 2022, the founder of DefiLlama exposed that Charlotte Fang was behind this account. The NFT and crypto space was shaken, and the floor price of Milady plummeted.

Milady's price once plummeted to 0.26 ETH

Subsequently, Charlotte Fang turned a deaf ear to external voices, displaying an indifferent attitude and refusing to engage in dialogue about the matter.

However, he later changed his mind—he published an article refuting the accusations of past racist and extreme remarks, claiming that the content posted on the virtual girl's social media account was merely a form of "performance art," and he was not a believer in these extreme remarks and ideologies, with many misunderstandings surrounding his statements and actions.

Was it really just a misunderstanding?

From market feedback, many people indeed chose to believe his words—Milady's floor price rose again, and criticisms in the NFT and cryptocurrency space gradually diminished.

Milady and Remilio have communities similar to a "cult." Despite many holders choosing to sell amid various controversies, some core community members chose to stand with Charlotte Fang and remained in the Milady community. These individuals helped the project survive the "crypto winter" of 2022.

For about a year, Milady's floor price remained relatively stable, with very active trading. Just then, another astonishing event occurred.

Musk's Butterfly Effect: The Birth of a New Meme Symbol

On May 10, 2023, Elon Musk tweeted with a Milady meme, with the text reading, "There is no meme, I love you." (Odaily Planet Daily Note: The watermark in the lower left corner of the image is from a meme site imgfli.com).

Musk's unintentional act opened up the imaginative space for Milady

Milady's floor price skyrocketed.

In further research, Musk may have found the Milady meme through tweets on the X platform (a speculation).

According to Charlotte Fang himself, it might be that Musk read and referenced his research and viewpoints on technologies like VR, AR, and accelerators.

Three months later, Milady became the 10K PFP NFT series with a floor price second only to Cryptopunks and BAYC.

Milady floor price performance

Just as this excitement began to settle, new twists were already brewing.

Internal Team Conflict: An Abrupt Conclusion

In September 2023, Charlotte Fang filed a lawsuit against three internal members of the Milady Maker team.

However, little is known about the specific developments and details of this matter.

What we do know is that earlier this year, Charlotte Fang voluntarily withdrew the lawsuit.

Now, despite numerous controversies, lawsuits, and even internal conflicts, Charlotte Fang has still achieved remarkable results:

• Milady remains among the top-ranked existing 10K PFP NFT series (with the floor price in the top 4);
• Previously, through the presale of the Meme coin CULT, the project raised $20 million;
• As an NFT with considerable influence and reach both domestically and internationally, Milady is one of the few blue-chip NFTs that frequently receive airdrops.

In the end, do you think Charlotte Fang is the originator of the "cult," or a misunderstood prodigy?

It is worth mentioning that Charlotte Fang's daily tweets have a rather unique style, indicating that he is quite adept at gaining attention online, and each tweet seems like a "fanatic declaration" from the Milady community.

As for how the CULT token will perform in the future, and whether he will once again embark on his "social experiment," we shall wait and see.

Recent tweet content from Charlotte Fang