Pitbull has this message to the younger generation — never take anything in life for granted.
The “Fireball” singer spoke at the University of Miami recently and shared photos of the event Wednesday, writing, “What an honor from a kid who used to park cars at the Orange Bowl, to speaking to the students at the @UnivMiami!”
According to the university, Pitbull, born Armando Christian Perez, was the latest speaker in the ongoing What Matters To U series and explained to the 2,000 students in attendance they need to “live for the moment.”
He spoke about being raised by Cuban immigrants and said it taught him, “Freedom isn’t free, but it’s priceless.”
“My family would always tell me, ‘You were already born in the United States of America. I gave you the best gift I could ever give you,'” he recalled. “I needed to take full advantage of it.”
Pitbull said he struggled with staying in school as he tried breaking into the music scene and credits his theater teacher, Hope Martinez, for inspiring him to keep trying.
“When you’re 17, you think you know it all. You don’t,” the Grammy winner said. “All it took was Hope believing in me, believing in my talent more than I did. That shows how powerful it is to have one person believe in you.”
All those life lessons helped him shape his career. “I realized that I need to be making music that speaks to you whether you know the language or not,” said Pitbull. “I had to find music that was global, that was timeless.”
He imparted this message to the students, which was, “Appreciate the fact that you are able to do something with your life that others weren’t able to do… The more you give, the more you receive.”
Copyright © 2022, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.