Farokh Sarmad became one of the most recognized voices in crypto during the 2021 NFT boom. Originally a music industry exec from France, he pivoted into NFTs early and became known for his podcast, Twitter Spaces, and relentless promotion of artist-led projects. At the peak he hosted daily Spaces with thousands of listeners, interviewing everyone from Gary Vee to unknown pseudonymous artists whose collections would then pump on OpenSea.
The 2022 NFT crash hit Farokh’s community hard. Many of the collections he had championed cratered by 90% or more. Unlike many influencers who simply pivoted to whatever was pumping next, Farokh stayed in NFTs during the bear market. He kept hosting Spaces, kept supporting artists, kept talking about the space when attention had moved elsewhere. This loyalty earned him rare respect in a cycle where most “thought leaders” moved on the moment their tokens stopped going up.
In 2023 Farokh launched Rug Radio, one of the most-recognized crypto media brands. Rug Radio published a token, built a podcast network, and bought out smaller publications. It wasn’t a massive financial success, but it represented something most crypto media had failed at: an attempt to build sustainable journalism for a native crypto audience, funded by tokens instead of banner ads.
Farokh’s broader significance is that he’s one of the few 2021-era personalities who didn’t burn his community when the music stopped. In an industry where reputation decays in months and most influencers have three or four rebrandings by the time you read this, the ability to stay consistent matters. Whether Rug Radio succeeds long term is unclear, but Farokh has already proven the rarer thing: in crypto, surviving the downturn with your audience intact is its own form of alpha.
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