Kanye West May Now Be Referred to as Dr. West

Adding to his long list of achievements this year, Kanye West will now be receiving an honorary doctorate from the esteemed School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Following an interview with the Chicago Tribune in which the Atlanta-born, Chicago-bred rapper expressed regret that he had not attended SAIC, Dean of Faculty and Vice President of Academic Administration Lisa Wainwright reached out to West, believing he was worthy of the reputable distinction. In a letter to the SAIC community, Wainwright says “influential individuals earned this distinguished award through their work, which is always imaginative and aesthetically rich, and sometimes provocative and controversial, shifting the cultural landscape in significant ways.” Having briefly attended Chicago’s American Academy of Art and Chicago State University, soon-to-be Dr. West’s prior experiences in post-secondary education is what inspired his first three albums — The College Dropout, Late Registration and Graduation. The commencement ceremony will take place on May 11.