Chance The Rapper will be delivering this year’s commencement address to graduates of New Orleans’ Dillard University on May 12.
Dillard University president Dr. Walter M. Kimbrough said Chance is “part of a new wave of artists who can openly talk about faith while being in hip hop, balancing the secular and the sacred.”
Chance’s 2017 independent project Coloring Book became the first streaming-only album to be nominated for, and win, a Grammy Award.
In addition to his music success, Chance has been using his growing popularity to give back to his hometown of Chicago, raising millions for public schools and the homeless, as well as advocating to put a stop to gun violence.
“The activism is a bonus with Chance,” Kimbrough added. “I thought he made for a great commencement speaker because of his spirit of being entrepreneurial and authentic. But his civic engagement, including encouraging people to vote and willingness to speak out on issues, like his recent opposition to a Heineken ad, are just as paramount.”