Warren “Wawa” Snipe

from Lone Star Summer-Fall 2022

Superheroes Celebrate Superpowers

Acclaimed Hip Hop Artist Accepts Invitation From Senior Class

“Never let anyone steal your vision. They may not understand your dreams, and that is okay. It’s not their dreams. They’re yours.”

By Gabriel Cardenas

Best known for “dip-hop” - a term he coined to mean “hip hop through deaf eyes,” - Warren “Wawa” Snipe delivered the 2022 graduation commencement speech before 62 TSD graduates, board members, faculty, staff, and families. Performing as a rapper since 2005, Wawa became a viral sensation following two Super Bowl halftime performances, in 2021 and 2022. It was his most recent performance though, alongside fellow rappers, Sean Forbes, Dr. Dre, Snoop

Dogg, Eminem, Mary J. Blige, 50 Cent, and Kendrick Lamar at Super Bowl LVI, that caught the attention of TSD’s class of 2022. TSD senior, Trey “You have your teachers Johnson, representing the class of 2022, and your family who requested a meeting with Superintendent have given you that Claire Bugen. He asked her to pass a letter wisdom, that heart, but to Wawa, whom he knew she would see at you also need to help a soon coming South by Southwest (SXSW) your community.” panel presentation. “I was here (in Austin) for SXSW getting ready to present in my panel,” Wawa said. “I was ready to go when Superintendent Bugen surprised me and said, ‘I

have a letter for you. Don’t open it until you’re finished.’ So, I tucked it into my jacket.” “I had forgotten about the letter when I later found it in my pocket. It was from Trey at TSD, inviting me to speak here today. I was awestruck!” Once the thumbs-up was received from his talent agent, Wawa confirmed his attendance to attend the TSD’s 2022 graduation ceremony. But this wasn’t his first time visiting the school. As a recruiter for Gallaudet University, Wawa first visited the TSD campus in the 90’s.

He was surprised at how much the campus had changed in the last 20 years. “I looked down South Congress Avenue and as I turned the corner, I saw something that looked familiar. I was shocked! [The campus] looked so different. Like a mini college. The feel. The vibe. It’s beautiful.” In his address, Wawa encouraged graduates to pursue their dreams, while stressing the importance of acknowledging the influence given by peers, teachers, administrators, and families along their journeys, and how this support has set their foundation.

“You have your teachers and your family who have given you that wisdom, that heart, but you also need to help your community.” Wawa imparted a new responsibility onto the new graduates. Not only did he encourage them to help their communities, but to also to step up as a role model to the next generations. Closing with a challenge to the graduates, he encouraged them to take their dreams, set goals, make them a reality, and never let anyone discourage them. “Never let anyone steal your vision. They may not understand your dreams, and that is okay. It’s not their dreams. They’re yours. What you have to do is develop those dreams, work hard toward making them reality. And then, they will see it.”