Swizz Beatz Harvard-Bound for Executive Education Program

By Tim Dhoul Updated Jun 06, 2016

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Introduction
HBS Executive education course to instill strategic leadership

Swizz Beatz Harvard-Bound for Executive Education Program: MBA News main image

Did you know Jay-Z has his own MBA case study?

Bronx-born record producer and songwriter, Swizz Beatz, who is married to R&B star Alicia Keys, has been accepted onto an HBS Executive Education program at Harvard Business School.

Swizz Beatz doesn’t have a degree, but his success in the music industry as a rapper and producer, working with the likes of Beyoncé and Bono, and in business – he is involved with several multinational companies in various capacities, and is an art collector (and occasional artist, teaming up at one point with Damien Hirst) – has allowed him to gain entry to the Owner/President Management (OPM) program with HBS Executive Education.

“I’ve raised millions for startup companies. Harvard looked at my real life experience and converted it into credits,” Swizz Beatz, real name Kaseem Dean, told Showbiz411.

Swizz Beatz hopes to sharpen his business skills and intends to stay on-campus during sessions to get the most out of his Harvard experience during the nine weeks of the executive education course. “This might be one of the happiest days of my life. From the BX [Bronx] to Harvard”, he wrote of his delight in being accepted into the course on his Instagram account.

HBS Executive education course to instill strategic leadership

HBS Executive Education’s Owner/President Management (OPM) program is aimed at enhancing the skillset of business owners and entrepreneurs, particularly in giving a company its strategic direction and allowing it to compete effectively in a global market. The course, split into three-week sessions across three years, is most suited for leaders of companies with annual sales of at least US$10 million, according to the HBS Executive Education website. It counts the former model and TV personality, Tyra Banks, among those who have completed the certificate course.

News of Swizz Beatz’s upcoming attendance is the second time in under a year that Harvard has shared headlines with a big name from the world of hip-hop. Nas, with whom Swizz Beatz has worked, saw a fellowship launched under his name at Harvard University last summer. The Nasir Jones Hip-hop Fellowship provides resources for scholars and artists hoping to delve into the university’s hip-hop archive and research institute, established in 2002. Meanwhile, back in 2010, Swizz Beatz himself was named inaugural ‘producer-in-residence’ at New York University’s Clive Davis Department of Recorded Music.

Dean is not the only businessperson in his household. His wife, Alicia Keys, as well as being a singer, pianist and actor, served as the global creative director of Blackberry between January 2013 and January 2014.

Written by

Tim Dhoul

Tim is a writer with a background in consumer journalism and charity communications. He trained as a journalist in the UK and holds degrees in history (BA) and Latin American studies (MA).