I tried to pay attention but they classes wasn’t interestin’ Notably, it wasn’t education that dead prez despised, but the racist manner in which they saw it being delivered.Īs stic man – one half of dead prez – recited in the song: Perhaps no rap group has expressed this view more clearly – and scathingly – than dead prez, who were inspired by their high school experience to conclude in a 2000 song titled “They Schools” that: “They schools can’t teach us sh-t.” Schools are anti-BlackĪ 2005 study concluded that “from the perspective of rap music, the iscourse of education is largely dysfunctional when it comes to meeting the material, social and cultural needs of African American youth.” Whatever one makes of the fact that these men – who all turned their backs on higher education decades ago – would turn around and use their fame and fortune to invest millions of dollars in a college education for others, their stories represent only a glimpse of hip-hop’s complicated relationship with education.Īs one who studies the use of hip-hop in educational settings, I have identified at least three ways hip-hop views formal education. Jay-Z has created a scholarship foundation that has sent students to study abroad and has also – along with his wife, Beyoncé – donated $2 million for scholarships to support students at historically Black colleges and universities. He also donated money to fully cover the college tuition of George Floyd’s daughter, Gianna Floyd. West has, at least historically, made education a central theme of his music. The pair are also seeking to open a similarly themed high school in Los Angeles in 2022.ĭiddy in 2016 donated $1 million to Howard University to help students who were struggling to pay off their student debt. Ditto for Diddy – now known as “Love” – who dropped out of Howard University after two years.ĭespite their lack of college degrees, these four men – who are currently the richest rappers in the world – have all taken a keen interest in higher education.ĭre, for instance, along with former record producer Jimmy Iovine, donated US$70 million to the University of Southern California to establish the USC Iovine and Young Academy, which focuses on arts, technology and innovation.
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