Northwestern Student Wows With Mockingbird Rap

Northwestern High School ninth grader Ikechukwu Ogwuegbu did something that a lot of high school kids have to do: he read To Kill a Mockingbird as part of his English class. 

Then, after that, Ogwuegbu did something that not a lot of high school kids do: he made a rap song about it.

Scratch that, the 14-year-old made an excellent rap song about it. Don't believe me? Take a listen to the video above. 

Ogwuegbu, who performs under his nickname Ike, said in an interview that he has been experimenting with music for years, beginning in the fifth grade. 

"There was a new dance called jerking," said Ike. "I wanted to be the one who wrote music for people to dance to."

This is not the first time Ike has mixed academics and hip-hop. When he was a student at Hyattsville Middle School he started experimenting with video and digital recording techniques and produced a rap video about pencil pouches for a media production class. Only a ninth grader, Ike's rapping has made him something of a celebrity at Northwestern, where he has wowed his fellow students with raucus pep-rally performances earlier this year. 

His Mockingbird assignment, for Carly Finkelstein's ninth grade honors English class, was to interpret the book through any creative means. The project had to incorporate at least five SAT words, which Ike rattles off in the first verse. 

Ike lives in Lewisdale, and is currently enrolled in the Jim Henson Performing Arts Program at Northwestern High School. He maintains a 3.5 grade point average while balancing athletics and a burgeoning music career. He hopes he can break into the music industry. 

"At first it was a hobby, but if I can make a career out of music, I'll be glad," said Ike. "It's something that I enjoy doing."

You can find more of Ike's music on his Youtube Channel