Kanye West can now add the prestigious title of “Dr.” to his name. The College Dropout rapper was in his hometown, where he was awarded an honorary doctorate degree from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago on Monday (May 11).
It has been a whirlwind of a weekend for West, who performed at the Wango Tango festival this past Saturday and rocked Chicago’s United Center during a first quarter surprise performance during the Bulls’ playoff run against the Cleveland Cavaliers. Later on Sunday, he gave an hour-long lecture and Q&A session at SAIC that focused on West’s creative aims and his artistic drive.
The Chicago Tribune covered West’s speech at SAIC and has more:
He stepped to the microphone, then stepped abruptly backstage, then stepped to the podium again and jokingly apologized for a lifetime of the things he has said: “I’m sorry, that was just my opinion.” He added he was nervous: “I felt my nerves a bit. I don’t feel that feeling a lot. The nerves of humility and modesty when being honored, a humanization of a reality of being recognized. All I thought as I sat (in the audience), kind of shaking a little bit, is I need to get rid of that feeling, I need to not be nervous.” Then, switching gears — as he did repeatedly in his five-minute, notes-free speech: “This honor is going to make your lives easier, for two reasons: You don’t have to defend me as much! And I’m going to make all of our lives easier.”
He did not explain.
He took long pauses.
West never looked entirely comfortable, but some of his typical bravado surfaced as he moved on. As the Tribune noted, West paused frequently to collect himself and admitted that his nerves were getting the best of him. For a short while, moments of humility were present before West darted off yet again.
Excuse us, Dr. West. Congratulations!
Watch the video of Dr. Kanye West receiving his honorary degree from SAIC.
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Photo: YouTube
