Toronto’s X University is set to offer a course on the worldwide impact of the Canadian city’s two biggest artists, Drake and The Weeknd.
From early next year, author, podcaster and writer Dalton Higgins is set to begin teaching the course, titled ‘Deconstructing Drake and The Weeknd.’
“On the U.S. college and university scene there are all kinds of courses being taught about rock, folk, pop artists like Miley Cyrus, Lady Gaga, Bruce Springsteen – so why shouldn’t there be a course about Drake and the Weeknd right here in Toronto?” Higgins said to local publication NOW.
“On American college campuses, there are easily more than 300 hip-hop courses being taught about artists like Jay Z, Outkast, Beyoncé (there are a lot of Beyoncé courses). Many Ivy League universities including Harvard and Cornell, have fully embraced hip-hop education, so we can do the same here.”
He added: “When you have two Black artists born and bred in Toronto who perform rap, R&B and pop, and who are arguably well on their way to becoming billionaires at some point in time, there is apparently a lot to learn. Remember, they both blew up despite being products of a local Canadian music scene that does very little to foster the growth of its Black music practitioners.”
Elsewhere this summer, Stormzy announced plans to support 30 more students through studies at Cambridge University through his scholarship scheme.
The Stormzy Scholarship was launched in 2018 and has so far supported six Black students through their studies at the prestigious university.
A new partnership between Stormzy’s #Merky Foundation and the bank HSBC, sees 10 students per year receive a £20,000 annual scholarship to cover tuition fees and maintenance costs.
Earlier this month, Drake’s Certified Lover Boy debuted in the No.1 spot on the Billboard 200 and had the best week for any album release this year. The new album unseated Kanye West’s chart-topping Donda and marks Drake’s 10th No.1 album.
