Murda Beatz returns to Fort Erie high school a star, after producing Drake, Ariana Grande and more
CBC
The Nov. 17 spirit assembly at Greater Fort Erie Secondary School, was "without a doubt, the most electric I've ever felt this building," principal Fred Luows said.
It was a full house as students and teachers gathered to celebrate student achievement, and special guest, "hometown boy," Murda Beatz.
Shane "Murda Beatz" Lindstrom is a music producer who grew up in Fort Erie. He nets over 2 million listeners each month on Spotify, and is known for his collaborations with Drake, Ariana Grande, Cardi B, Travis Scott and more.
The quest to get Lindstrom back to Greater Fort Erie Secondary School (GFESS) started before the pandemic, Luows said. The school's head secretary is friends with the musician's mom, and helped make the connection.
Bringing in someone with his celebrity status, who lots of young people know and relate to "reaches all types of learners" and "instills confidence in each of my students so that then they could move forward," doing what they love, Luows said.
The school held two assemblies so all students could attend, and the program included English teacher Thomas Todd interviewing Lindstrom.
GFESS is a relatively new school that amalgamates several older schools, including the one Lindstrom went to, where Todd taught him English.
Todd recalled seeing a teenage Lindstrom with production software open on his computer and asking about it. Lindstrom shared how he'd just recently sold his first beat online for $30.
"It's great seeing one of your former students succeed," Todd said, and it was also "a bit surreal," to have a memory of someone just starting out in their career, and then seeing them again, grown up, successful and famous, Todd said.
"He shows up, he's got an entourage, he's got a manager, he's got a bodyguard, he's got a photographer," Todd said. "But it's odd because I still see him as Shane … and I think he probably sees me as Mr. Todd from grade 10. It didn't seem like there were any barriers."
Todd asked Lindstrom about achieving the level of success he has, what he does when he's back in Fort Erie, and about some quotations he's shared on social media regarding success and learning from failure.
"He had some really good answers: Never forget where you came from. Fort Erie keeps him grounded. He comes to see his mom and his friends and the places where it all started," Todd said. "You can tell that he's got a really good head on his shoulders."
Lindstrom told CBC Hamilton it was also surreal for him to see all the teachers, and to be back in a school setting. It was also "super funny" to hear teachers call him "Murda Beatz" instead of Shane.
"It's definitely grounding," being back in Fort Erie, he said.
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