Mad News : April 2025
Lads having fun, creators having fun, traders having fun!
April kicked off with a banger from OpenAI - the release of ChatGPT 4.0, unlocking powerful image and visual generation for everyone. And as you might expect, the Mad Lads community took advantage of it to create content!
The month felt like a rollercoaster for the markets, shaken by President Trump’s tariff announcement, which sent waves through both crypto and stocks market.
April also marked the end of the vested Wormhole airdrop tied to Mad Lads… what a ride it’s been!
Thanks to Mad Lads and Backpack, the month also was filled with meetups and events all around the world!
Mad AI Lads
The Mad Lads didn’t waste a second. As soon as ChatGPT 4.0’s image generation dropped, the timeline lit up. We already knew the community had elite meme and content game, but this new update took it to a whole new level!
Let’s take a look at what the community has been cooking…
Lads Park
Inspired by the iconic style of South Park, the Mad Lads community took over Cartman’s world!
Let’s take a look at Mad Lads as if they were born straight outta South Park:
Bulls Lads
Back in April 2022, DeGods made waves by buying a 3v3 basketball team. This year, the Mad Lads said “hold my Gatorade” and became one!
Lets’ take a look at our new team:
Mad Cards
Some members of the Mad Lads community had their PFPs graded by PSA, and as expected, every single one got a perfect grade of 10.
Certified rare. Certified iconic.
Mad Lads AMAs
The Mad Lads Discord turned into the go-to hub of AMAs during April. The community had the privilege to learn from Zagabond (Azuki Founder), James Hunsaker (Monad Co-Founder), 0xsebastiena (Sophon Co-Founder) and even a special Backpack AMA with Armani in Backpack Discord.
Here is a short summary of the Mad Lads x Zagabond AMA :
IP, Culture & Community-Driven Growth: Zagabond dove into Azuki’s brand identity, how it stands out with anime, streetwear, and pop culture influence, and emphasized how community feedback has shaped the project’s evolution
Behind-the-Scenes Stories: From meeting Steamboy (legendary Overwatch artist), to surviving public backlash over past projects, Zagabond shared raw founder struggles and the journey that shaped Azuki today
Big Moves & Future Plans: Azuki is going mainstream with the acquisition of Anime.com, a trading card game in development, and plans for an anime series. Plus, iconic items like gold skateboards and silk bombers cement Azuki’s place in Web3 culture
Here is a short summary of the Mad Lads x James AMA :
James’ Crypto Origin & Monad’s Vision: From high-frequency trading to shitcoin hustling, James shared his journey through Jump Crypto, building Pyth, and eventually co-founding Monad; an EVM chain blending Ethereum's innovation with Solana’s speed. Testnet is live, and mainnet is just around the corner
Tech Deep Dive & Community Vibes: Monad aims for 10k TPS with affordable nodes (~$1,000 PCs), a custom-built database, and strong decentralization goals (3,000+ nodes). James stressed the importance of making crypto fun and not just profitable
NFTs, AI, and Mad Lads Love: Though late to NFTs, James is now fully onboard, rocking a Mad Lad and enjoying the testnet mint scene. He shared cautious thoughts on AI in crypto and gave shoutouts to Fantasy Top, Backpack, and the Mad Lads squad for their early and ongoing support
Here is a short summary of the Mad Lads x Sophon AMA :
Mad Lads x Sophon Alliance: Mad Lads were selected as 1 of 7 “Friends of Sophon”, and the only Solana-native project, thanks to unmatched vibes and community alignment
Sophon’s Vision: Building Web2-style apps powered by zkSync + ZK-proofs, Sophon aims to return ownership of data, engagement, and value to users with real-world use cases in gaming, events, and AI
Mass Adoption in Sight: With partnerships like Trial Xtreme and Open, plus frictionless onboarding (no wallets or seed phrases), Sophon is looking to become one of the most used crypto platforms by DAU
Here is a short summary of the Backpack AMA :
All-in-One Financial Hub: Backpack merges crypto, equities, and treasuries into one platform redefining what a crypto exchange can be, with a focus on compliance and censorship resistance
Wallet + Exchange Fusion: Seamless onboarding (email login, no seed phrases) with full self-custody and smart account abstraction. Everyone will be able to use it
Capital Efficiency & Long-Term Vision: Cross-margin, auto-lending, and real yield on idle assets, backed by strong compliance and a mission to build a long-term, community-first financial movement
Backpack Boost
It’s no secret that using Backpack Wallet gives you a serious edge, not just in user experience, but also in rewards and boosts!
You can currently enjoy :
3% Petals Boost on Perena
30% F Points Boost on Fragmetric
10% Passive Grass Boost on Turbo Tap (Eclipse)
Many extra points and collectible on various Monad Projects
Much more!
Backpack isn’t just a wallet… it’s your key to maxing out every opportunity in the ecosystem!
IRL Events, meetups and challenges
April was once again filled with IRL events and meetups all around the globe.
Many Lads and Backpack supporters participated in those events, repping the brand, connecting, and making memories!
All upcoming events are listed on madlads-hub.xyz/events-list
Monad Bangkok Connect
During this event, attendees had the chance to dive deeper into Monad, connect with new people, and of course, grab some insanely cool merch!
Mad Night Hong Kong
All Mad Lads holders were kindly invited to Hong Kong for a Mad Night; a sweet mix of live concert, drinks, merch and fun!
https://x.com/madlads_mcm/status/1906359495598690542
Backpack Brunch
Backpack supporters and Mad Lads holders gathered for a special brunch in Paris, with a beautiful view of the Seine. Not only enjoyed the moment but also secured their exclusive merch!
Rumor has it that Alexana and Coach were cooking up some special content during the Paris brunch…
Mad Lads x El Camino De Santiago
CarreNFT completed a 192km journey in 7 days, walking from Villafranca del Bierzo to the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela. Mad Lads are definitely built different!
Mad Mariage
In September 2024, the Mad Lads community celebrated a beautiful event; the first-ever Mad Lads wedding, with Wendy and Cuong!
Now, in April 2025, the community is coming together once again to celebrate the marriage of Fomo Shark and Lassie An. The whole community is invited to share in the joy in Da Nang - Viet Nam!
Wishing them a lifetime of love, laughter, and legendary memories!
https://x.com/ishneet2/status/1910607252379328704
TOKEN2049 (30th April - 1st May)
Armani will be taking the stage as a speaker at TOKEN2049 in Dubai at the end of the month!
TOKEN2049 is one of the biggest crypto event, organised annually in Dubai and Singapore, where founders and executives of the leading Web3 companies and projects share their view on the industry.
Planning to attend? Don’t miss out on connecting with the Lads by joinning this Telegram group https://t.me/Lads_in_Dubai
Backpack Season recaps
Backpack Season I is heating up, and while the market rides up and down with President Trump’s tariff announcement, one thing is clear: Backpack trader points are only going up!
Let’s take a look at how things are stacking up week by week:
Week 1
$1.68B in total spot + perps volume
20K+ active traders
Week 2
$2.9B total volume
$620M in 24hr perps volume
35K unique traders
Week 3
With new features like audible trade notifications, ROI tracking, funding rate pages, detailed chart views, and trigger price upgrades Backpack leveled up, and so did the stats:
$4.1B in total volume
$950M in 24hr perps volume
$113M in open interest
46K unique traders
Week 4
- $3.2B in total volume
- $131M in Open Interest
- 35.5K unique traders
Brick by brick, Backpack is setting a new standard in the CEX game.
To everyone still waiting for access due to regional restrictions, your time is coming. And when it does, you’ll be able to add your own brick to the Backpack legacy!
$WAO
April 17, 2024 – Wormhole and Mad Lads dropped something never seen before in the NFT space: the Wormhole Badge. By simply opening your Mad Lads xNFT, you could claim daily $W tokens, up to 16000 $W over time.
As if that wasn’t enough, each eligible Lad got a 4000 $W token shortly after TGE.
It’s been a wild ride, one that showed the true potential of xNFTs and the strength of Mad Lads community.
Huge thanks to Wormhole. $WAO!
MAD MERCH
Do not miss the brand new MAD LADS BOMBER JACKET PRE-ORDER!
If you are a proud Mad Lads owner, head over to https://shop.backpack.exchange/products/mad-lads-bomber-jacket, connect your wallet to get the discount automatically applied and pre-order your merch! This is running until the 5th May.
https://x.com/i/status/1914163746890830198
PODCAST CORNER 🎙️
The Rollup x Armani Ferrante x 0xMert - Solana Super Apps
https://x.com/therollupco/status/1914323662477443415
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