Back when Kanye West was 20, he dropped out of university to pursue music, and he even named his 2004 debut album The College Dropout. Now, the rapper has finally earned his degree — an honorary doctorate from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.
Yeezy received his honorary degree today (May 11) along with a few other local notables (gallery owner Rhona Hoffman, SAIC President and Director Douglas Druick, and the LeRoy Neiman Foundation's Janet Neiman). As you can see from the above photo [via DNAinfo], Kanye wore a cap and gown to the ceremony. Video footage of the ceremony is streaming live here, and you can listen to audio of his acceptance speech below.
In a statement, SAIC named West "a leader in the music industry as a Grammy Award-winning recording artist and producer, as well as a fashion designer and interdisciplinary artist whose work provokes cultural discourse by reflecting a realism of the street."
This ceremony comes one day after Kanye gave an hour-long talk at the university. An audience recording of the entire thing can be heard here courtesy of Complex. As you'd expect, he talks about music, fashion and his life.
The Chicago Tribune points out that Patti Smith is another famed musician to receive an honorary doctorate from SAIC.
Yeezy received his honorary degree today (May 11) along with a few other local notables (gallery owner Rhona Hoffman, SAIC President and Director Douglas Druick, and the LeRoy Neiman Foundation's Janet Neiman). As you can see from the above photo [via DNAinfo], Kanye wore a cap and gown to the ceremony. Video footage of the ceremony is streaming live here, and you can listen to audio of his acceptance speech below.
In a statement, SAIC named West "a leader in the music industry as a Grammy Award-winning recording artist and producer, as well as a fashion designer and interdisciplinary artist whose work provokes cultural discourse by reflecting a realism of the street."
This ceremony comes one day after Kanye gave an hour-long talk at the university. An audience recording of the entire thing can be heard here courtesy of Complex. As you'd expect, he talks about music, fashion and his life.
The Chicago Tribune points out that Patti Smith is another famed musician to receive an honorary doctorate from SAIC.