Young MC earned a degree in economics from the University of Southern California. Although Damon dropped out of Harvard in 1992, his time there wasn't a total waste. Keith Elam, also known as G Guru, died in 1982. Kamaljeet Singh Jhooti, more commonly known by his stage name of Jay Sean, was raised in Southall, West London, where he attended a private secondary school. With smart business sense, Luda also broke numerous younger Southern rappers, such as 2 Chainz, using his Disturbing tha Peace record label as a major front for the genre. Rappers Who Went To College and What They Studied . Helen Keller, 1880-1968. Sign up for The Urban Daily's email newsletter! These musicians beat the odds twice once to get into a super tough university, and again to make their mark on the music industry. The one hitch that stopped her from singer stardom? NOTE: Ice Cube gets Honorable Mention only because the technical school he attended no longer exists. They have used their creativity and storytelling abilities to create songs that have resonated with people all over the world. Her ambition and a compelling letter to the Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism got her a place in one of the top communications programs in the world. Hired by Dr. Dre to write rhymes for his group, the World Class Wreckin Cru, Cube went on to partner with Dre, Eazy-E, and MC Ren as N.W.A., trading in glitzy party records for a hard-hitting, street-reportage style. The highest degrees offered are usually associates and program lengths are usually two years. Dr.Brenda Greene, Kwelis mother, is a member of the board of directors of the Nkiru Center for Education and Culture. He directed his debut feature, Pi, seven years on from graduation. Richard Branson, founder of the Virgin Group, quit school at the age of sixteen. RELATED: TV Starts You Didn't Know Went to Ivy League Schools. And it all started at NYUs Tisch School of the Arts, where Glover studied Dramatic Writing, graduating in 2006. Diddy, Remy Ma, Birdman, Lil Wayne, The Game, and Busta Rhymes are just a few of the celebrities who have done it in the past. He began to seriously work on the script with pal Ben Affleck, and after the movie made it to the screen, the pair won the Best Original Screenplay Academy Award. These hit-makers and record breakers are serious smarty pants, and have attended some of the most prestigious institutions in the United States. Here are the top 10 rappers who became successful entrepreneurs: 1. He roomed with former U.S. Vice President Al Gore as an upperclassman. It was while studying theater at NYU that Mos Def stepped, almost accidentally, into hip-hop. Anyway Lil Wayne did go to college. Cheap Therapy If You're Broke. Stay up to date with StyleCaster on the latest celebrity and entertainment news, as well as red carpet style photos. Some presidents graduated from one (John Adams, John Quincy Adams, Theodore Roosevelt, Franklin D. Roosevelt and John F. Kennedy graduated from Harvard, for example) and some graduated from the. HipHopWired Featured Video Before they were selling out shows and dishing out bars, a number of rappers spent their time hitting the books. J. Cole graduated Summa Cum Laude from St. John's University in 2007. Contact schools for more information on enrollment, tuition, and aid. Now the multitalented and super-smart Alicia Keys is a 15-time Grammy Award-winning singer/songwriter/producer, an accomplished actress, a NY Times best-selling author, and an entrepreneur. He earned a bachelors degree in economics from the University of Southern California before moving back to Queens to work as an economics professor at Queens College. One famous actor lived with former U.S. Vice President Al Gore while he attended Harvard. The hip hop recording artist and social activist attended Cheshire Academy, a coed boarding and day school in Cheshire, Connecticut. Some of these hip-hop stars earned their degrees after attending four years of college, while others were presented with honorary degrees for their contributions to the arts. Twenty years after he graduated, Norris landed the biggest gig of his career so far: Hank Schrader in Breaking Bad. Likewise, LL Cool J received an honorary degree from Northeastern University in 2014. Childish Gambino studied at New York Universitys Tisch School of the Arts. Tommy Lee Jones graduated cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts in English from Harvard University in 1969. He has gone on to have a distinguished and acclaimed career on the stage, on television and in film. Talib Kweli studied experimental theater at New York University. The new data from the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center shows enrollment among first-year students declined 3.1% this fall. Ludacris. Degree:Communications and Business,St. Johns UniversityImage Source: Survivor Org Wiki. Its no surprise that Guru could hold his own at the most competitive and elite historically black college in the nation: Morehouse College. David Banner David Banner studied business at Southern University in Baton Rouge, La. Cole, who was born in 1985, began rhyming at the age of 12 and producing his own beats at the age of 15. In April 2007, Newsweek called him "the most powerful actor in Hollywood". Rah Digga Rah Digga is a legendary female rapper who attended New Jersey Institute of Technology. They have also used their platform to inspire others and make a difference in the world. While there, the Parks and Recreation star was very active in the college societies, and was a member of the Hasty Pudding Theatricals, Harvard Radcliffe Dramatic Club, Harvard Opportunes, Black Students Association and the Signet Society. Donald Glover, AKA Childish Gambino, graduated from New York University's Tisch School of the Arts in 2006. Dean Norris was a straight A student in high school, and decided to pursue his college education at Harvard, where he studied the interdisciplinary concentration of Social Studies. Your email will be shared with theurbandaily.com and subject to its, Style Guyd: Jidenna Is Leading The Dandy Movement in Mens Fashion, How Luke James Turns Burberry Jeans And Vans Into Black, Cool Style, 3 Rappers More Worthy of Adulation Than Yung Berg [VIDEO]. in political science, officially graduating in 2000. William went to school for a year at AUs culinary program. Rappers have taken many different paths after high school graduation. Some of them dropped out but even more graduated. Born in Boston, Gurus father was a judge and his mother the director of libraries for the public school system a perfect example of upper-middle class black excellence. For generations now, rappers have aimed for authenticity, and often that authenticity means narratives of dropping out of school, living a life of crime, and a sudden rise from poverty to wealth. He attended New York University where he studied Experimental Theater. We can see that he is putting his degree to good use -- the communications in his music and business side of him had to play a role in his partnership with Interscope records. Harvard graduates went on to found disruptive companies, invent new technologies, discover new. Gurus work is steeped in the history and pre-history of hip-hop, as his Jazzmatazz albums demonstrate; experimental collisions of jazz artists, hip-hop beats, and rapping, the four Jazzmatazz records are like an alternate universe hip-hop. Who thought Arnold Schwarzenegger would become Californias next governor? Lil Jon spent two years studying at St. Joseph's University in Philadelphia before going on to finish college at Ohio State University in 1993. Of course the man who wrote Hard to Earn majored in business, and at Morehouse ranked one of the most entrepreneurial colleges in the nation business is no joke. It is the largest university in the United States by undergraduate enrollment, as well as the largest by total enrollment. With steady work in TV movies, theater, and sitcoms, the kid who would be Mos Def dropped out of high school to pursue his acting career, and credited his passion for acting as the force that protected him from the violence and crime of the Brooklyn projects. Musicians with impressive careers are given honorary degrees as a result of their success. St. Johns University is a private, Roman Catholic, research university located in New York City, United States. Waka Flocka received an honorary doctorate in philanthropy and humanitarianism from the University of Delaware. Throughout his childhood, he was heavily involved in Atlantas Dirty South scene. ; 4 Garcia said his father passed away on April 8, 2022.; 5 Gazzy Garcia is his real name, and he is from Miami, Florida. At USC one of the most prestigious private research universities in the West Young majored in economics while honing his rap skills, catching the ear of two classmates who had started Delicious Vinyl Records. Rah Digga - Rah Digga is a legendary female rapper who attended New Jersey Institute of Technology. Although Amy Brenneman studied comparative religion at Harvard, it seems theatre was her true love, as she co-founded Cornerstone Theater Company while she was there. Because of the scope of the program, there are no requirements for a degree, but there are some programs available, such as music production. Some of your favorite rappers have attended your childrens graduation. He attended the University of Houston and majored in Business. . Degree:Dramatic Writing,New York UniversityImage Source: Hip Hop Wiki. Degree:Architectural Drafting, Phoenix Institute of TechnologyImage Source: Rap Wiki, Most Affordable Technical and Trade Schools. According to Tyra Banks, she just didn't have the vocal chops to pull it off. She started writing poetry as a teenager after watching classic movies such as Lil Kim and Foxy Brown. Alicia Keys was signedby Columbia Records at only 15 years old. While others passed with flying colors, others just passed by; attending for a brief period before focusing on their music career. After getting a degree from the University of Kentucky, Judd got a Master of Public Administration degree from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University in 2010. What about the rappers with college degrees? Lil Wayne The most prominent rapper of today that has blessed us with hit after hit for more than 20 years is also a post-secondary attendee. You upload all of the information, and we go over it thoroughly. He achieved a near perfect score on his Law School Admission Test (LSAT), scoring in the 99th percentile of students taking the test, and was admitted to Harvard Law School. As a result, some of them pursued higher education while remaining focused on their careers. A year after graduating, she achieved her first Oscar nomination for Closer. The University of Alabama is a public research university located in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States, and the flagship of the University of Alabama System. Plazacore. In November 2017, famous American rapper and actor LL Cool J took to Instagram to announce that he has completed Harvard's Business of Entertainment, Media, and Sports program. Andre 3000 received a close second with a vote of 6.58%. Yo Gotti - Yo Gotti attended Southwest Tennessee Community College and took Business as his major. Southern University and A&M College is a historically black university in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. At that same time, in a galaxy not so far, far away, Portman was studying at Harvard. References to Columbia crop up often in Vampire Weekend's songs. Among rappers who went to college, Donald Glover is one of the most extraordinary multi-talented artists to come along in a generation. Kanye West The rapper we love to hate. Before that, though, Ludacris was studying music management at Atlantas Georgia State University, getting his foot in the door as an intern at Hot 97.5, and even DJing at Freaknik. He is best known for Genres, a hip hop neo soul pop song with 9 rows. The British-born rapper and producer known as Young MC is forever defined by his biggest hit, Bust a Move, but dont reduce Marvin Young to a one-hit wonder. Ryan Leslie 11 languages Anthony Ryan Leslie (born September 25, 1978) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and entrepreneur from Washington, D.C. 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