HOUSTON – Rapper Dee-1 is known around the world.
On Tuesday, he brought his talents to Pasadena and the YES Prep Southeast campus, but this was no concert.
“In rap, all you hear about is, 'Get money, get money, work hard, grind, get money.' I care about what you do once you get the money,” said Dee-1.
He was speaking to the students about financial literacy.
“It's called the Earn Your Future curriculum,” said Dee-1.
He didn’t start out as a finance-minded rapper.
As he describes his career, “It all started in college when I got cut from the basketball team at LSU. My girlfriend cheated on me. I turned to hip hop as a way to express these emotions I was dealing with and going through at the time. When I realized how many artists were using their platform for negativity, I was like, man, I don't want to be like that. I want to use this platform that comes with being a popular rapper but I want to use it to be real, be righteous and be relevant.”
But then, seven months ago, he posted a music video of his “Sallie Mae Back” single.
The rap was all about how he had finally paid off his student loans.
“When I finished paying my loans off I felt this rush, this high inside of me that I was, like, 'Oooh, I need to do a song about this,’” said Dee-1.
The video has nearly 900 million views and has clearly struck a social nerve.
He’s embracing that idea and has partnered with PwC to go on a high school speaking tour about money.
“When they hear that I'm talking about applying for financial aid, applying for scholarships, being smart when you take out student loans, I have their attention. They're such a captive audience because I'm a rapper in their eyes,” said Dee-1.
When asked how he gears his message toward an audience with varying backgrounds, he said, “The truth is universal and all I'm doing is I'm preaching truth inside of these schools. The truth -- it doesn't matter what color you are. It doesn't matter if you come from a millionaire family or if you live in the projects.”
Here is a link to his music video.
Sallie Mae Back won’t be the last money-minded rap Dee-1 puts out. In fact another music video is on its way. This one will deal with cars and car loans. Here’s a web exclusive of Dee-1 rapping a bit of that song.