Stormzy Receives Honorary Degree From University Of Exeter

Stormzy, the platinum – selling grime artist, was conferred an honorary doctorate by the prestigious University of Exeter in appreciation of “his extraordinary contributions 

in the fields of higher education, philanthropy, and wider participation.”

According to the University, the honour was in recognition of the rapper’s outstanding contribution to society.

Obviously, his music career took off in a major way since then and he’s also made the Cambridge University dream a reality for other students with his scholarship fund.

Stormzy also set up the #Merky Foundation in 2020 and has gone on to pledge millions to tackle racial inequality, justice reform and Black empowerment in the UK. 

Last year, the foundation partnered with HSBC UK to ensure a further 30 ‘Stormzy Scholars’ are funded over the next three years covering tuition fees and maintenance costs.

Speaking at the ceremony, Stormzy addressed the room and said: “I feel truly blessed and grateful to be up here receiving this honorary degree. I’d like to say a big thank you to University of Exeter and you guys as well for allowing me to share this moment with you.

“The journey I took to get to this moment has been considerably different to 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.”

Watch a video of the full speech below.