Rapper, Stormzy, can add another achievement to his list of accomplishments as he has received an honorary degree from the University of Exeter for his “outstanding contribution to society.”
The rapper also gave a heartwrenching speech to the graduating class, where he shared his different journey compared to the graduating class. Stormzy says, “The journey I took to get to this moment has been considerably different from yours. You guys have the guts and the grit and the dedication that it takes to study for years and to finish your degree, whereas I got my AS results in my first year of college and said, ‘Yeah, see you later.’ I didn’t have the same minerals that you guys have. A year later, I took another swing at my A-levels at a different college–until I sat down for my English exam in January and walked out after 10 minutes.”
Stormzy is very open about his college journey. Three years ago, he made an appearance on the Jonathan Ross Show, where he shared how his college experience came to an unfortunate end when he was expelled from school due to a prank.
Stormzy says, “I put loads of chairs on another student, sounds mad. I was horseplaying, and the student was trapped. It was 7 or 8 chairs.”
The degree that Stormzy has received recognizes the artist’s outstanding achievement in the field of higher education, philanthropy, and widening participation. He is most known for setting up the #MerkyFoundation in 2020, which has since pledged millions to dismantle racial inequality and support justice reform and black empowerment in the UK. He also began issuing scholarships to black students at the University of Cambridge to address the low number of black students attending Oxbridge institutions.
During his acceptance speech, he gave a shout-out to his mom, who was sitting in the crowd stating, “It has always been her biggest dream for me to go to university and graduate and then become somebody.”
