Campaign Aims To Land Drake as Commencement Speaker

GETTY IMAGES | PHOTO COURTESY Rapper Drake is the focus of a Facebook campaign to arrange for the rapper to speak at fall 2016 commencement.
GETTY IMAGES | PHOTO COURTESY
Rapper Drake is the focus of a Facebook campaign to arrange for the rapper to speak at fall 2016 commencement.

Hannan Aboubaker wants Drake to speak at her graduation.

The senior majoring in respiratory care will graduate in fall 2016. She started a Facebook event in January to convince the rapper to speak at the 10. a.m. commencement ceremony Dec. 16.

Aboubaker said her sister, who attends New York University, shared a Facebook event trying to arrange for record producer DJ Khaled to speak at NYU’s commencement. This inspired her to do the same at North Dakota State.

“What’s a better way to celebrate our success from NDSU than with Mr. Champagne Papi?” Aboubaker said in an email. “He’s got the juice like that.”

Aboubaker added she has not reached out to university officials or commencement coordinators to arrange for Drake’s appearance. She also said the university could cancel Aaron Carter’s April 29 concert to funnel those funds toward setting up a commencement speech by Drake.

Aboubaker said she has also considered starting a petition for signatures. Her Facebook event “Let’s Get Drake to Speak at NDSU Commencement,” has been met with “hilarious excitement to unbelievable rejection,” she said.

Aboubaker said she hopes NDSU administration has “caught wind of my event on Facebook and it has casually came up in conversations.”

“I just love Drake and if he were to actually come and speak at my commencement ceremony, I wouldn’t know what to do,” Aboubaker said. “I would probably die from excitement, right on the spot.”

Sadie Rudolph, NDSU media relations coordinator, said in email that she believes “a committee is responsible for choosing the commencement speaker.”

Commencement speeches traditionally include remarks by President Dean Bresciani and one to two student addresses, commencement programs from the last three years evidenced.

Registrations & records maintains the conferral of degrees and graduation ceremonies.

The Spectrum contacted Drake’s representatives for comment, but they did not return emails.

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