A legendary hip-hop figure was recently honored in the Bronx, where he received an honorary doctorate in music.
Grandmaster Flash of the hip-hop group Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, nee Joseph Saddler, received his second doctorate at Lehman College in the Bronx, according to his Instagram account.
“Dr. Grandmaster Flash – honored to receive my second doctorate from @lehmancuny and to address the class of 2023. GO DO GREAT THINGS⚡️”
HipHopDX reported this is the second doctorate the legendary DJ received. Last year, Flash was given an honorary Doctorate of Fine Arts from Buffalo State College.
In his speech at Lehman College on June 1, 2023, he advised the graduates and mentioned how being from the Bronx in New York City, his hometown, set the tone.
“We from the Bronx — we are starters, we are finishers, we are very, very important,” he stated.
“And I must tell you, young people, as you go out into the world, you will probably do what I did… [and] [make] mistakes. I cannot tell you how many mistakes I made before the technique finally came into fruition. I say to young people, as you leave here, you will scrape your knees, [that’s] guaranteed, but we Bronx people, we go hard,” he continued in his speech.
Flash joined with Keith “Cowboy” Wiggins, Nathaniel “Kidd Creole” Glover, Melvin “Mele Mel” Glover, Eddie “Scorpio” Morris, and Todd “Rahiem” Williams to form Grandmaster Flash & The Furious 5. They were known for the way they dressed and Flash’s scratching and spectacular skills on the turntables.
Their classic song, “The Message,” released in 1982, was one of the first hip-hop records that spoke of life in the inner city. The record set the tone for hip-hop artists to shed light on the ups and downs that perhaps were overlooked or not mentioned.