Kanye West Speaks To Harvard University Students

Kanye West made a pit stop at Harvard University Sunday.

The rapper was in Boston for his Yeezus tour, which resumed Saturday in Philadelphia after a momentary hiatus due to major technical difficulties with the show's stage equipment. But before taking the stage he talked with the Ivy League's Graduate School of Design, reports Us Weekly.

"I really do believe that the world can be saved through design," he said during his speech, which is a part of his design company's "DONDA Design Lecture" series.

He spoke at the school alongside his company's creative director Virgil Abloh who posted a photo of the packed lecture hall on Instagram.

"Just gave a talk at Harvard GSD with Kanye," Abloh captioned the photo. "Super surreal. #DONDA design lecture series #yeezustour."

It's no secret that West is a perfectionist when it comes to architecture and design, which is reportedly the main reason so many of his tour stops have been postponed. Prior to an unfortunate truck accident holding several pieces of important stage equipment, the "Black Skinhead" rapper delayed performances because the artistic quality of the stage wasn't up to par.

"Everything needs to actually be 'architected,'" he said to the Harvard students. "This is the reason why even some of the first DONDA employees were architects that started designing T-shirts instead of buildings."

West's lady, Kim Kardashian, the mother to his 5-month-old daughter, North West, was also on hand to hear him speak. The reality TV diva couldn't be prouder of her man's eloquent talk and passion for art and design.

"My baby speaking at the Harvard Graduate School of Design," she captioned an Instagram photo in which West can be seen surrounded by the attentive student body



The reason I turn up so much in interviews is because I've tasted what it means to create and be able to impact, and affect in a positive way," the 36-year-old rapper continued.

"I believe that utopia is actually possible," West said adding that he's often disappointed by the designs of today. "But we're led by the least noble, the least dignified, the least tasteful, the dumbest, and the most political. So in no way am I a politician -- I'm usually at my best politically incorrect and very direct. I really appreciate you guys' willingness to learn and hone your craft, and not be lazy about creation."

In fact, West was a bit intimidated by the artistic talent that surrounded him in that room as he toured the facility prior to speaking and admired the students' work, reports ContactMusic.com. Their hard work proved to pay off as the "On Sight" rapper presented the scholars with free tickets, approximately 300, to his show later that night.

"After walking through here I decided that I wanted to make sure for anyone that didn't have tickets tonight that you all could have tickets to the show," he said to the delight of the audience.

Because of their work's professionalism, which he considered to raise the bar on design, the often outspoken rapper felt nervous about the Harvard student's feedback regarding the aesthetics of his show.

"Tonight, this show, if you come see it, I'm a bit self-conscious because I'm showing it to architects," he said. "The stage does have flaws in it. It's an expression of emotion so give me a pass on that."




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