Rapper Cardi B made an unexpected visit to the Alexander Macomb School in Morris Heights to announce the donation.

Cardi B is a record-breaking, Grammy Award-winning rapper. While she’s living her “Best Life” now, it hasn’t always been easy.

She came from humble beginnings.

And it was back to those humble beginnings that she recently returned to pay it forward to the middle school that she credits with making her who she is today.

The 29-year-old hip-hop sensation paid a surprise visit to students and staff at her old school in the Bronx, I.S 232, and she didn’t come empty-handed.

Students watching Cardi B deliver speech at their middle school Photo credit NYC DOE

She came bearing gifts – to the tune of a $100,000 donation – to go towards the school’s performing arts program.

Her announcement to the students was captured in a sweet video which she later shared in an Instagram post @iamcardib.

The Reason Behind the Generous Donation

(Bronx Times)

Alongside the IG video, Cardi B shared the following: “This middle school, IS 232 in the Bronx, has a very special place in my heart!! It turned me from an 11 year old girl into a little teenage adult.”

Cardi B with NYC Schools Chancellor David Banks and founder and executive director of Community Capacity Development K. Bain Photo credit NYC DOE

She went on to explain that kids in the Bronx “have to grow up fast and QUICK,” due to their circumstances and their environment: “”Like a lot of these kids i went thru so much while I was going to school here. Experiences that changed me forever and made me who I am today.”

In her speech to the students, Cardi gave some insight into what her life at the school was like. She admitted to making “a lot of bad decisions” and getting arrested for fighting another student.

Cardi B with I.S. 232 students Photo credit NYC DOE

“A lot of the teachers were really tough on me because they saw something in me,” she said. “I was like a bad kid, but I was very special to a lot of these teachers and I still got them in my heart.”

She encouraged the kids not to make the same mistakes that she did and to think long-term: “Make sure you remember, where do you want to be in a couple of years from now? Make sure you think longterm. It’s never too late for you guys.”

How Cardi B’s Donation Will Make A Difference

The money will be used for in-school performing arts and other areas that will set the students up for success. Cardi hopes that this will have a positive impact on the lives of the children. She said: “I hope my donation can help create an amazing afterschool program that will help kids stay out the streets or a troubled home and most importantly allow them to learn something that they can take with them through LIFE.”

The Bronx middle school visit is just one stop for Cardi. She also plans to visit different schools and programs in Queens and Brooklyn through her partnership with Community Capacity Development – a human justice organization whose mission “is to uproot the systemic challenges facing marginalized communities of color.”

And she teased that there is even more to come, writing: “I love being able to help young kids however I can and I can’t waiiiittttt to tell y’all what I’ve been working on for the past two years. It’s something super close to my heart and I can’t wait to share very soon.”

Giving back is about so much more than just money. It’s about making a positive difference in the lives of the people who are affected by it. And that difference could change someone’s life.