The Community Speaks… Talking Journey + Conviction
In this blog article and another this week, we're doing something a little different. Instead of the usual updates and insights, we're bringing you special, interview-style blog posts.
We've reached out to several members of our community to ask them the same set of questions. Our goal is to showcase the diverse backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives that make our community so unique.
By hearing directly from those who are deeply involved in PepeCoin/BasedAI, we hope to provide you with fresh insights and a deeper understanding of the project's impact.
This article’s theme is Journey + Conviction.
Let’s go!
Community Participant Introduction:
Participant #1 :
Deadguy - https://x.com/carpetfrawg
“A really cool community guy who is fun to talk to, continually cracking jokes in the Tg, and always says gm.” (Ninja’s bio of Deadguy)
Participant #2 :
Wolfhart - https://x.com/wolfhart_nft
He’s been in the crypto space since 2016. Currently an Ape Gang and Pepenals mod. In his free time, he’s drumming for @varaaltaband or working on video production.
Participant #3 :
Das KekBro - https://x.com/Das1080
Cryptohead est. 2017 - A member of the transparent (unmanipulable) anonymous (uncontrollable) decentralized (incorruptible) platform for financial sovereignty.
He’s also a loving father of 2 beautiful children, and living peacefully in the northern Australian forests.
Participant #4 :
FAFO - https://x.com/FAFO365
A PepeCoin community member and DeFi enthusiast. He runs a project called PAW Chain (https://x.com/pawchain), and has a passion for great people and hip hop/battle rap. He wants to see the world be bettered through kindness, generosity, and integrity.
Participant #5 :
Krumlar - https://x.com/CryptoKrum
Just some guy trying to figure out the world, and is having fun in the process.
“A wise soul who also happens to be a really nice guy and a good fren to the community.” (Ninja’s bio of Krumlar)
———
Question #1: Can you share a little about your crypto journey, and what initially drew you to PepeCoin?
Participant #1 : Deadguy
My crypto journey began around the beginning of 2021. I initially bought into BTC, and then a few other projects that were receiving some buzz online, but settled on a few main projects, and decided to ride them out. I also joined a trading room (Equities ETC and Microfutures) and learned as much as I could as quickly as I could from the wonderful folks in that community. Fast forward to December, 2023, I saw a mention of Pepecoin on Twitter, and decided to dig into it. Once I joined the Telegram group and discovered what this project is about, I was hooked.
Participant #2 : Wolfhart
My journey started at the end of the 2016 bull run when I bought litecoin at the top. I got wrecked and had to hold it for years until the next bull run. But I was hooked and spent all my free time learning about crypto and its multi faceted lanes. I started liquidity farming, staking, buying NFTs and much more. When I learned about the Pepecoin project in the spring of 2023, I couldn’t believe what they were building. Could this one project really be able to pull off everything I love about crypto? The answer is yes.
Participant #3 : Das KekBro
My crypto journey began on the Silk Road, but like many I didn't see the value in what I was involved in back then, and so didn't hold onto the keys over the years (good bye 14 btc 😅). But by 2017, I became very interested in ETH and so I started buying in and just holding, realizing that adoption was still very low and could only go higher the longer I held.
Then in January (2024) when the bull really started taking off I decided to dedicate my time to the space by trading full time. In order to continue to find alpha I started tracking wallets and joined a few TG groups. During that journey I came across DC Roth's PepeCoin video, and I was hooked. Once I visited the website I immediately aped.
Later after having read the whitepaper and having understood the elegance and genius of the tokenomics, I became fully invested.
Participant #4 : FAFO
I first got into crypto in 2020 when I was curious about a particular project and in doing so I was immersed in what many know as CryptoTwitter and learned quite a bit about crypto, blockchain, self-custody, any many other very important topics. I was drawn to PepeCoin from word of mouth referral from a few friends within another project. I spent some time researching and knew this was a solid project with depth and longevity in the crypto space.
Participant #5 : Krumlar
Started my crypto journey in around 2017. I come from a tech background, but that's only part of what I find fascinating about the space. I got interested in PepeCoin when it was still its own L1 (it was also known as Memetic then), with their Masternodes (called 'Mastertoads', kek).
Question #2: How do you see the future of PepeCoin evolving over the next year?
Participant #1 : Deadguy
My vision for Pepecoin is one of extreme optimism. With various aspects of the ecosystem set to be released in the future, I believe the project will evolve into something we have never seen in the crypto space. I imagine the attraction to an old school website with modern features and technology will grow exponentially in the coming months, years.
Participant #2 : Wolfhart
I think PepeCoin will evolve into one of the leading projects for decentralized AI / the crypto landscape overall. This project has something for everyone and the devs want to see everyone to succeed. I think Pepe paint will become much bigger and more popular amongst artists, and their AI bot will be a massive game changer.
Participant #3 : Das KekBro
Well, from a trading point of view PepeCoin will continue to get rarer (rare coin, gud coin) once the burn portal is opened - and that supply scarcity will have a profound impact on the market cap, in a very positive way. Not only pushing the price ceiling higher, but also driving higher demand.
Pr0m3theus has also straight up stated that PepeCoin will continue to have a rich relationship with $Based forever, which to me means that PepeCoin will continue to derive value due to increased utility - staking, kekdaq trading, kekbot prompts, who knows, the PepeCoin OS is set to become a operating system; sky's the limit.
Regarding the social / community it seems clear to me that bull or bear it will continue to grow. PepePaint for example has been the exemplar of how to onboard creative minds into the crypto space, reward them very well for their contribution, incentivizing innovation and time invested, and also bridge the gap between culture and tech. This is something no other token has successfully done! It's huge, and cannot be understated.
Participant #4 : FAFO
Oh man. In the next year, I see PepeCoin evolving a lot! They’ve stayed true to their roots of being the very first and real Pepe even through the years of trials they’ve faced. The thing I love is they continue to innovate for the broader crypto space and truth be told I’d love to see PepeCoin on multiple chains.
Participant #5 : Krumlar
The next year is going to be super exciting for Pepecoin and its growing ecosystem. I envision:
An explosion of popularity of PepePaint and its NFTs.
Kekdaq coming online (a revival - kekdaq was the OG NFT marketplace, back in the Memetic days).
Kek.bot public release (PepeCoin will be used in some way).
The Brain Burn event for BasedAI, leading to reduced supply and increased popularity. It'll take a while for the full compliment of 1024 brains to be minted/staked for (I see 3-5 years), but the initial burn event will be epic nonetheless!
The Pepeverse. A fun place to hang out with frens, and show off your PepePaint NFT collection (amongst other things)!
And of course #ThePepening! It's memetically inevitable.
And with all this, the wholesome community and dev team will keep growing. There's a lot to look forward to!
Question #3: What is the most exciting feature or aspect of PepeCoin for you?
Participant #1 : Deadguy
Without a doubt, PepePaint has been the highlight for me. I am not an artist, nor ever claimed to be. However, the ability to go into PepePaint and create something that brings joy not only to me, but to others, is priceless. Sure, there is a revenue creating side to it, but spreading joy and laughter through my silly visions and lackluster art skills is what makes it worth the efforts.
Participant #2 : Wolfhart
My favorite feature is definitely PepePaint. It’s so easy to create, mint, and sell your art. It gives all the power to artists, and it’s fun searching through the collection and seeing what Pepe art people have come up with.
Participant #3 : Das KekBro
The tokenomics reign supreme for me. They are just so sexy! The smooth interactivity of each aspect into a cohesive whole is the definition of dankness. I could go on and on about this, but to keep things to the point I'll use a short example:
PepeCoin (PC) gets burned, yielding brain credits (BC) - the prerequisite for Brain node ownership - at a rate of 1PC:1BC for the first 1000PC burned, then 1.2PC:1BC for the second 1000, 1.4PC:1BC, etc...
This interplay technically decreases the MC of PC (by burning supply) but in reality because it drives up price very quickly, due to increasing demand from the newfound utility, it indirectly drives up MC. This increased MC when combined with the fact that staking Pepecoin (100,000:1) is another way to operate a Brain stabilises the ecosystem while simultaneously rewarding token holders.
Also, while this is happening the action itself drives up the price of BC (which can be traded as an NFT) over time at somewhat of an exponential rate due to the lower available supply of PC versus the amount of PC needed to acquire BC (which increases).
So in a single move (the burning of PC for BC), 3 major things happen simultaneously -
1: An increase ecosystem stability (whales have less impact on price due to increased MC + long term holders are rewarded - just like with BTC)
2: An increase in the $ valuation of both tokens (lower bottoms & higher tops due to increased utility + supply shock)
3: Each asset incentivizes holding the other (creating a healthy & wholistic ecosystem)
This is as short as I could make my example! And is by no means the only interplay going on in this ecosystem. Fucking amazing token synergy.
Participant #4 : FAFO
I am most excited about the integration they have with BasedAI! The LLM technology being shown and further developed is remarkable! I’ve also been excited how PepeCoin keeps things simple. Simplicity is key in further mass adoption across web3 and beyond.
Participant #5 : Krumlar
For me, it's the fact that the devs deliver, time and time again. They do what they say they will, and it's very refreshing in this space (unfortunately)! Sometimes it takes a while (all good things take time), but it gets done. And they're super active with the community too, which is another rarity. PepeCoin gud, Ultra Rare!
Question #4: How has being a part of the PepeCoin community impacted you and/or your outlook on crypto?
Participant #1 : Deadguy
The Pepecoin community has shown me that there are still some good, honest, respectable people in the crypto space. I’ve been able to see the light with regards to influencers, “KOLs”, and paid shills through my time with Pepecoin. This project has also exposed the idea that real utility can be brought to the space in a way that is not only financially rewarding, but fun! Crypto needs more of this, and less of the pump-n-dump rug pulls perpetrated by influencers and KOLs.
Participant #2 : Wolfhart
It has given me the most conviction and confidence I’ve ever had in the crypto space. The devs are active, the community is engaging and fun, the features are endless, and the tech is undeniable.
Participant #3 : Das KekBro
It has completely overhauled my crypto experience. I've started drawing, and earning from my art (something I always wanted to do as a child but never had the incentive to actually dive into).
I've stopped trading for the rest of the bull, feeling very comfy to have simply invested my earnings into this PC ecosystem and to be rewarded with the most insane 1($based):500(PC) staking contract rewards - which works out to be something like 200% APY if I'm not mistaken.
This means I have much more time with my kids and family to go out into nature and enjoy my life knowing that all I need to do is sit and relax and take profit when it makes sense to near the top of the cycle.
I don't even have to stress about removing all of my investment at the pie cycle top because I don't see the bear shaking down the price past the point it's already at now, and depending on the staking contracts offered by that stage, it may even be more profitable to leave the majority of my investment in. Feels like I've just bought ETH at $100 and all I need to do is chill; God is blessing my children with a stable future.
Participant #4 : FAFO
Personally I’ve found that the PepeCoin community has been extremely welcoming, and in that, it’s impacted me to engage more and meet new frens that I may not have met before. It’s also grown my faith in how a GOOD crypto project should operate beyond what the normie may consider such as green candles all day everyday…that’s simply not sustainable. Find a good project with solid community and based devs…your journey becomes a lot less stressful.
Participant #5 : Krumlar
The community is unlike anything else I've come across in the space. Most other coins/tokens/projects just have vapid 'price targets / pump the coin!' BS going on, but here, the community build things of quality and substance (PepePaint is a perfect example). There's not price target talk (for good reason), and it builds a wholesome atmosphere. For me, it gives hope that there are still gems and quality work going on in Crypto, you just need to spend time to find it. And once you do, it Feels Good, Man! I can't wait until BasedAI L1 comes online, people will understand this then.
Question #5: What advice would you give to newcomers of the PepeCoin community?
Participant #1 : Deadguy
My best advice to newcomers to this project is to do the research into what it is all about. Don’t take someone’s word for it. Read the whitepaper, read the other research documents, and spend time in the Telegram group to see what the community is all about. Go to the OS and play around with the different apps. And above all, participate! Become a part of the community. Take advantage of the gifts that the Pepecoin team is giving everyone.
Participant #2 : Wolfhart
Buy, stake, chill. Don’t just trust the devs, read through old messages and understand that this is their life’s work. What they are building is truly extraordinary and on the cutting edge of AI tech. I think everyone should a bag of Pepecoin and Based.
Participant #3 : Das KekBro
Join the Telegram Chat, get a Pepe profile pic and start having fun on paint.pepecoin.io!
Start testing out the Cyan test-net now, get your wallet set up and await the new update incoming for candidate 2.0 so you can try out Brain operations for yourself before you decide to burn.Read the Whitepaper! Do it again and again! If you're slightly confused by any aspect, ask the Telegram chat, and/or plug it into a LLM and get it to explain what's in there in simple terms (it won't get it 100% right but it's still a very helpful thing to do)
Number 1. thing though is get in that telegram chat and start asking questions, join the community, it's a blast!
Participant #4 : FAFO
As cliche as it sounds, take some time to slow down and learn a little. Read a bit about the project, engage in the community, and ffs have a little fun! This is a community to have fun in but also be equipped with info to learn. Life sucks sometimes so chill and create some memes to make yourself or someone else smile. We need more smiles in this world.
Participant #5 : Krumlar
Advice to newcomers: Enjoy yourself! Check out the website, make some dank NFTs in PepePaint, drop by and check out the chat group on Telegram. Get a feel for the place, and then you'll see why many call it home.