Weapons N' Roses Guitarist Slash Quits X After Solana Meme Coin Hack – Decrypt

Weapons N’ Roses guitarist Slash has completely deserted X (previously generally known as Twitter) on Tuesday, citing “repeated hacks” that used his account to advertise a meme coin.

The choice got here only a week after hackers compromised his verified account to advertise a Solana-based meme coin known as GUNS, falsely positioning it as an official Weapons N’ Roses crypto venture.

“This was a thought of resolution after repeated hacks, and it displays a shift in how I would like to remain related shifting ahead,” Slash informed followers in what may, at the least for now, be his remaining tweet.

It stays unclear why Slash claimed the hacks have been ” repeated” or if the message was directed particularly on the April 2 hacking incident.

In the direction of the top of his farewell tweet, the rock legend directed followers to observe him on different common social media platforms, prompting some followers to counsel he strive Bluesky, a decentralized different.

Welcome to the Jungle

The guitarist’s account was hacked just some hours after April Idiot’s, posting a number of promotional messages in regards to the pretend Weapons N’ Roses meme coin.

“In 2 hours, we’re launching a meme coin on SOLANA. Keep tuned…” the hackers posted, pinning a put up claiming they are going to “make investments $1M in $GUNS within the subsequent hour” to generate synthetic pleasure.

These posts have since been deleted, although the token stays reside on PumpFun, albeit with just a few $3,300 in worth left.

You Ain’t the First

This isn’t the primary time that meme coin hackers have focused a tough rock band; in June final yr, American heavy steel band Metallica noticed its Twitter account hacked to advertise METAL, one other Solana meme coin.

The hackers used the band’s model colours and falsely claimed partnerships with Ticketmaster. The token reached a market cap of at the least $10 million earlier than crashing inside hours.

The hacks symbolize a broader sample concentrating on musicians and celebrities on the platform for clout, coin, or in any other case.

Something Goes

The hack contrasts with Weapons N’ Roses’ reliable efforts to make use of rising applied sciences.

In February final yr, the band made headlines for his or her progressive use of AI within the music video for “The Normal,” with design company Inventive Works London utilizing Steady Diffusion to create dreamlike visuals over Unreal Engine renders.

The music video featured a younger boy strolling throughout a trippy, magenta-tinted cyberpunk cityscape, with reside footage of the band morphing into alien characters.

The AI-enhanced video included refined Easter eggs with “G,” “N,” “R,” and “A.I.” components—a deliberate creative alternative, relatively than an unauthorized exploitation of the band’s model.