Big Sean isn’t ready to slow down
Big Sean isn’t ready to slow down
The rapper’s penchant for working nonstop comes as no surprise. But he still makes time to ensure that his city isn’t forgotten.
Big Sean sounds a little tired.
It’s hard to tell if it’s due to the fact that he’s a new father, that he’s been spending late nights working on new music, or if it is something else altogether.
Having talked with the superstar artist, it seems likely that it’s all of the above.
“It's a lot. I'm working on new music. I've been working on it for a while. Every day I've been working; new albums … it's a few other things I don't want to announce yet, but yeah, I'm definitely working,” Big Sean explained with a slight laugh.
Big Sean’s penchant for working nonstop comes as no surprise. He’s a Detroiter, and Detroiters are always working. That drive is innate; most Detroiters have a hustle or three. And yet the rapper still makes time to ensure his city isn’t forgotten.
He uses his massive platform to give back to his hometown through his nonprofit, the Sean Anderson Foundation, which hosts educational programming and scholarship drives in Detroit. He’s worked with Ally Financial on Shark Tank-like pitch competitions for students, preparing them for futures in entrepreneurship. He’s also still working as the Detroit Pistons’ creative director of innovation, offering guidance on some of the team’s initiatives off the court.
He’s even said he’s still working with Emagine Theaters to get a proper movie theater within Detroit’s city limits, though the pandemic has changed the timeline of development.
Looking at the work he’s done in the city, the multi-hyphenate is the physical embodiment of his 2020 song "Why Would I Stop?” It would be understandable if the rapper, whose music career started in 2007, took his foot off the gas. But Big Sean isn’t ready to slow down just yet.
In January, Big Sean was named to the 2023 class of AT&T’s Black Future Makers program, which aims to “celebrate Black dreamers who are authentically contributing to the culture during this era of greater possibility” and highlights the company’s commitment to providing “equitable access to economic opportunities.” He and several other artists, entrepreneurs and activists will mentor selected HBCU students.
“I want to inspire Detroit. I feel like I have a responsibility to show what is really possible from that city,” Big Sean said during the Black Future Makers Celebration. “A lot of people give me my flowers, but I want to get my hands dirty and pick my own flowers, make my own future and be in control of my own legacy.”
That mentality, Big Sean said, comes from the people in his life that influenced him, including his parents and his grandparents. His grandmother, Mildred Virginia Leonard, broke barriers as one of the first Black woman captains in World War II.
Leonard belonged to the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion, the only all-women, all-Black battalion during World War II. Tyler Perry recently started filming a movie based on the exploits of those brave women.
“That’s something that was brought up when AT&T chose me for [Black Future Makers],” Big Sean said of his grandmother, who died in 2014. “They really made sure to show respect and honor my grandmother as well.”
Family is of the highest priority to the superstar rapper. Big Sean and singer-songwriter Jhene Aiko welcomed their first child together in November, a baby boy they’ve named Noah Hasani.
“I got a son now. I gotta be a man and show him how to be a man,” Big Sean said. “He’s the best part of me and his mom. That’s the beauty of wanting to be a better person — wanting to uplift your family and not be someone who brings your family down.”
When asked about the production studios he created around Detroit for the youth, the rapper’s pensive tone shifts. The first studio he built was at Cass Technical High School, his alma mater (he told me he still has love for Cass Tech’s rival, Renaissance High School, my alma mater), and he talked about the joy he sees in the students who use his studios to explore their skills.
“I used to get in trouble for selling CDs, so for it to do full 180, that is incredible, you know?” Big Sean explained as he reminisced about his high school years. “So I always love highlighting that studio and letting students do their thing in there.”
Now, there are two other studios through the Boys & Girls Clubs of Southeastern Michigan, with potentially more on the way.
Big Sean’s also been spending time in the studio. He confirmed “Twenty88,” his collaborative effort with Jhene Aiko, is still on the way (“For sure, definitely in the works”) and he appeared on the “Creed III” soundtrack with EST Gee for the fiery track “Anthem.”
“The last few years I’ve just been working on stuff, so I can’t wait to put it all out to the world,” he said. “During the pandemic, I couldn’t really tour. So I can’t wait to get back on the road and get people new music, new vibes — you know, new energy.”
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