“It’s a Teleportation Feeling”: Steve Aoki Talks Pop Culture Memorabilia and His New Auction House

Steve Aoki — the in-demand touring DJ and record producer — has in recent years launched business ventures involving the metaverse and NFTs. Now, his latest entrepreneurial effort is all about tangible goods.

Sound X Vision, an upstart pop-culture auction house specializing in “entertainment artifacts,” joins the ranks of sector stalwarts like Heritage and Julien’s. The company held its inaugural online sale of more than 300 lots on Sept. 9. Its own bid for disruption: enforced transparency in a realm where phantom bidding often creates the appearance of demand.

For Aoki, himself a longtime memorabilia collector, the curation process was about “finding and showcasing really unique pieces, things that have a direct connection to what you grew up watching and listening to, that can blow you away.” He adds of pop-culture objects: “They have a different resonance than fine art. It’s a teleportation feeling.”

Key hammered pieces included a Golden Snitch from…