When hip-hop artist Common was 12 years old, he saw a ghost.

While running equipment back and forth as a ball boy for the Chicago Bulls, he said, he thought he saw the spirit of Emmett Till, a young black boy beaten to death in Mississippi in the 1950s for whistling at a white woman. Although Common admits that this might have been his imagination, he remembers clearly what this “spirit” told him.

“You have a purpose in you that is deeper than you will ever know,” he said.

Common, the Grammy Award-winning rapper and actor, used this anecdote to begin an intimate speech with Syracuse University and local high school students at Hendricks Chapel Tuesday night about finding self-confidence and pursuing one’s path. After the speech, Common took questions from the audience.

The speech, presented by the Student African-American Society in partnership with the Muslim Student Association, was open to the public. Five students from Nottingham High School and 13 from Jamesville-Dewitt High School also attended the event.

Common is best known for his long-running rap career. He emerged from a more underground following into the mainstream with the 2005 album “Be,” followed by “Finding Forever,” which showcased his quick-witted, passionate flow over soul-inflected beats. Both albums were largely produced by Kanye West.

Common has earned the label of a “conscious rapper” for his lyricism that wrestles with love, passion, faith and social ills. Though rooted in harsh realities and human imperfections, Common’s rhymes are known for their uplifting messages.

Common brought the same hopeful and genuine demeanor of his rap style to his speech, in which he encouraged students to find a path, believe in it and then live it. Through stories from his childhood and career, he continually returned to the idea of achieving ‘greatness’ through hard work and confidence.

He provided a window to his personal life by recounting his breakup with neo-soul artist Erykah Badu.

“I was willing to dim my light to be in that relationship,” he said. “And that’s a no-no.”

Common then collaborated with Kanye West, who was hot off the success of his debut album, “The College Dropout.” Common credited West as an inspiration to be bold and outwardly self-assured. He acknowledged that “some people say it’s cockiness,” but he saw it as a way to achieve greatness.

“I looked at Kanye and learned from that brother. I used to be kind of shy,” he said.

While the event was not billed as a traditional concert, Common did open the evening with a vigorous freestyle, in which he rhymed his hometown of “Chicago” with SU’s mascot “Otto.” After he finished his speech, he gave the audience an a cappella taste of the title track of his next album, “The Believer.”

Audience members cheered and gave standing ovations throughout the speech, and during the Q-and-A portion of the event, some audience members asked personal questions.

Devon Miles, a senior art photography major, began to cry as she asked for advice on how to believe in herself while being overwhelmed by academic and social stress.

“It just shows how much he moves me and inspires me,” she said.

Many fans waited after the speech for autographs and photographs, and Common did not leave until everyone received them.

“The energy in here is beautiful,” he said.

While many audience members expressed gratitude for Common’s uplifting speech, some were unimpressed.

Martin Fernandez, a junior anthropology major who owns every Common album and has seen the rapper perform multiple times, said he appreciated the overall message but found the speech “a little sappy.” He felt the spiritual overtones were not accessible to all audience members, he said.

“For instance, I’m an atheist,” Fernandez said. “It’s not going to help me to look to spirituality.”

As Common ended his speech, he returned to his childhood memory of seeing Till’s ghost and challenged the audience to consider their own goals in life.

“I still hear the voice of Emmett Till telling me I have a greater purpose,” he said. “What’s your purpose?”

Published on March 30, 2010 at 12:00 pm