Grammy Award winning hip-hop artist and Chicagoan Chance the Rapper is scheduled to give the commencement speech at Dillard University, located in New Orleans, the university announced.
Chance is scheduled to give the university’s 82nd commencement address on Saturday, May 12.
“He is part of a new wave of artists that can openly talk about faith while being in hip hop, as he says ‘I speak to God in public,’ balancing the secular and the sacred,” Dr. Walter M. Kimbrough, president of Dillard University said in a university press release.
Kimbrough also stated that Chance’s activism in Chicago made him an obvious choice to speak to graduates.
“The activism is a bonus with Chance,” Kimbrough said. “I thought he made for a great commencement speaker because of his spirit of being entrepreneurial and authentic. But his civic engagement, including encouraging people to vote and willingness to speak out on issues, like his recent opposition to a Heineken ad, are just as paramount.”
Kimbrough, who teaches a class on ethics and hip hop, has sought Bennett appearing on campus for two years, citing his overall appeal to the public outside of music circles.
“He’s not signed but a multiple Grammy winner,” said Kimbrough, who’s also known as the Hip-Hop Prez, while adding that Bennett gives away his music, movie tickets, Jordans, and awards to school teachers. “He’s the artist that your grandmother would love.”
