After five months of hard work, Drake joined his fellow students at the commencement ceremony celebrating his graduation from high school. With diploma in hand, the Young Money rapper shared life lessons with his peers at Jarvis Collegiate Institute in Toronto.

“I still managed to fight this education system and tell myself that it wasn’t for me,” said Drake, who dropped out of high school at 15. “I get why this institution is in place for each and every one of us.”

Drake worked with his teacher Kim Janzen over the summer to complete his studies. “What this is about today for all of you is the art of following through. That’s one of the most important life lessons that my uncle every taught me,” said the 26-year-old, whose uncle was in the audience. “I’m so proud of you because there are different ways to follow through, and tonight you followed through with a straight shot and for that, you should give yourself a round of applause.”

Despite his money and success, he still was missing something in his life. “I reached a point in my life where I realized there aren’t material things that can give me the excitement that I’m looking for,” he shared. “There’s a void in my life that I need to fill and I need to sit and think long and hard what that was. It was the fact that I had left a gaping hole in my story of following through.”

He continued, “Sometimes it’s about going there, not getting there. Sometimes it’s the journey that teaches you a lot about your destination. And sometimes when you get there, you’ll look back and you’ll realize that you wish you could go there again because all the experiences are the reason that you are who you are today. I want you all to give a round of applause for yourselves for getting there.”

He dedicated his diploma to his mother. “This piece of paper I’d like to dedicate to my mother because she’s a retired teacher and always wanted me to graduate,” he said as the crowd cheered. “I think I’ll sleep a little better tonight knowing that I found a way to follow through.”

“Coach Cal at my graduation!!” wrote Drake, who received a jersey from University of Kentucky’s Wild Cats basketball coach John Calipari.