Back in March, Lil Baby launched the My Turn Scholarship Fund at his alma mater, Booker T. Washington High School. Now, in celebration of the Atlanta-bred rapper’s My Turn (Deluxe) album, Amazon Music has released an interview with Lil Baby, where he describes what returning to his hometown was like and why he chose to give back to his high school’s students.
“I was one of those students who was like always smart, like, I made As and Bs, since I could remember,” he reflected on his own time spent in school. “When I left here, I didn’t ever think I’d come back. There’s nothing like this.”
“I wanna let y’all know why It’s important for me to give back. More than anything, because this is where I come from,” he addressed the crowd of high schoolers before launching into a performance of “Woah.”
“I seen myself in that crowd, a couple times. I seen a crew, like, yeah, that’d be me and my crew,” he continued in the interview. “The main thing I want to pass on to these kids is they’re the future. You don’t really feel that you’re gonna be a leader of the world one day. I didn’t understand that. But now I do.”
Lil Baby’s My Turn debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 in March. The album featured collaborations with Gunna, 42 Dugg, Future, Lil Uzi Vert, Lil Wayne, Moneybagg Yo, Young Thug and more.
“The My Turn album, it’s me in the present tense,” he said. “I’ve been rapping for two years and my career’s been going up and up. I’m not associated with the things that I’ve normally been — or are used to being associated with. I’m the same person — that’s mind, body and soul. Physically, everything has changed around me. So, [My Turn] is just me rapping on relationships, children [and] just everyday challenges.”
“With this scholarship, their turn is coming,” he concluded. “[They’ll think,] it’s my turn to get a scholarship, my turn to go to college, my turn to be a new leader of the world.”
Lil Baby’s My Turn (Deluxe) dropped last Friday (May 1). The 26-song effort added six new tracks and another collaboration with 42 Dugg.
See Lil Baby’s full interview below.