UPDATED 13:18 EDT / JULY 21 2014

Naomi Brockwell is the Bitcoin Girl (Video)

naomi-brockwellThere’s a new celebrity in Bitcoin town and it’s Naomi Brockwell, the star of Moving Picture Institute’s new music video “Bitcoin Girl,” which parodies the Billy Joel song “Uptown Girl.”

Bitcoin Girl is an interesting composition of Bitcoin culture along with amusing lyrics that use the original tune to tell a similar story. The video and song include memes and jargon common to Bitcoin culture, and even has a nod to Dogecoin (with the Shiba Inu meme-dog appearing in the video to say, “Wow.”)

For those not familiar with this sensation, take a moment to watch it now.

Brockwell says that she got into Bitcoin through one of her roommates, who herself was trading in bitcoins. Having someone within arms reach actively participating in Bitcoin culture gave Brockwell a glimpse of the technology and drew her in.

In fact, this sense of wonder is what led her to working with Moving Picture Institute (MPI) to produce Bitcoin Girl. MPI, Brockwell explains, is dedicated to promoting freedom through film and online content and this meshes well with the opportunities presented by Bitcoin. Brockwell works for MPI full time as the institute’s Program Officer.

Cleaning up Bitcoin’s image in the public eye

One of the first things she discovered about Bitcoin is that the sense of wonder about the technology dimmed somewhat outside of the glow cast by cryptocurrency luminaries. The outside world has a harsh view of cryptocurrencies and Bitcoin in general; the coin is often cast with stories of doom and gloom by the mainstream media. She points to a Reason-Rupe poll (cited in her TheHill op-ed) that showed that only 8% of respondents knew what a bitcoin is and over 56% wanted the government to ban it.

The FBI bust of the the Silk Road, an online black market for drugs and other interesting inventory, and its alleged operate Ross William Ulbricht, aka the Dread Pirate Roberts, came along with a strong Bitcoin lead connecting the cryptocurrency to criminality. Earlier this year the media reported the arrest of BitInstant CEO Charlie Shrem in relation to money laundering and the Silk Road bust–a criminal activity that watchdogs began pointing out early in Bitcoin’s life. The insolvency of Mt. Gox, once the Bitcoin exchange-of-note, led to a lot of media ink showing what would look like instability in the bitcoin market.

Much of these dark clouds in the news have done little to derail Bitcoin adoption and the growth of the community. News businesses continue to offer bitcoin options to customers, such as Dell. News of long running Bitcoin-related charities such as Sean’s Outpost gets overwhelmed by the more sensational elements of the technology.

“When you’re involved in the bitcoin world you don’t notice that there’s a lot of negative information. The BTC community is a very positive entrepreneurial community,” Brockwell says. But, she added, it’s when you involve outside parties that the divide becomes obvious.

Some people she’d spoken to outside of Bitcoin circles thought that Bitcoin was dead. “That was a real wakeup call,” Brockwell says.

Education is key to Bitcoin advocacy

Between Bitcoin Girl and MPI, she hopes to advocate for Bitcoin through outreach and education. After all, she found curiosity and interest in the subject by simply being exposed to the culture and gaining an understanding of the underlying technology. She believes that the same can be done for the population at large and that this would counteract much of the negative press appearing in the mainstream.

Focusing on education of the mainstream media and the population at large, Brockwell argues, is also extremely important because of upcoming legislation.

To keep up with Brockwell’s work, visit BitcoinGirl.com and keep living in that Bitcoin world.

Screenshot from “Bitcoin Girl” from Moving Picture Institute

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