Harvard University set up 'Nas Hip-Hop Fellowship' fund

One of America’s top Ivy League schools, Harvard University have announced a scholarship program to help fund the tuition fees of students showing potential in the artistic field of hip-hop.

Named in honour of Queens rapper Nas, the ‘Nasir Jones Hip-Hop Fellowship’ has been described as an “intellectually challenging and innovative scholarship that reflects the rigor and achievement of hip-hop performance”. It’s been launched by the Hip-Hop Archives in conjunction with the W.E.B Du Bois Institute.

The rapper said of the news: ”I am immensely over-the-top excited about the Nasir Jones Hip-Hop Fellowship at Harvard. From Queens, NY to true cultural academia. My hopes are that greed for knowledge, art, self-determination and expression go a long way.”

Nas added: “It is a true honor to have my name attached to so much hard work, alongside great names like Henry Louis Gates, Jr. and W.E.B. Du Bois and to such a prestigious and historical institution, and all in the name of the music I grew to be a part of.”

It’s not yet known how many prospective students each year the Nas Fellowship will help, but Professor Henry Louis Gates Jr, an expert in African and African American Research, said on the matter: ”Nas is a true visionary, and he consistently shows how boundaries can be pushed and expanded to further the cause of education and knowledge.”

Listen to ‘The World Is Yours’ by Nas below:

[via Rolling Stone]