Forrest Glasper is an IU senior majoring in informatics and computing. Glasper is a huge influence in his community, inspiring others to follow their dreams. Outside of school, he has a rap career that is taking off. Glasper is going after what he wants and doesn’t plan on stopping anytime soon.
“As a Black man who has a life inside and outside of college, I always feel like all odds are against me,” Glasper said. “I have to figure out a way to succeed.”
At IU, Glasper was involved in ServeIT, a nonprofit technology clinic that allows students to apply their technical skills in order to build spaces for students with interests similar to their own in the local nonprofit community to better serve their missions and focuses.
This hands-on experience fulfilled Glasper’s major and internship credits. He was able to gain experience that would prepare him for the professional computing world.
Alongside ServeIT, he was involved in the NSBE of IU. NSBE is the National Society of Black Engineers. This nonprofit organization provides members with leadership training, professional development, mentoring opportunities and career placement services. NSBE provided Glasper with a more diverse reach in his field of study. It gave him a chance to connect with other Black engineers and form connections that will benefit him in the future.
Outside of school, Glasper is either engineering music or babysitting his nephew or cousins — two of his favorite pasttimes.
Glasper first got his start in music when he tore his ACL and could no longer play basketball, which was a stress reliever for him. A close friend, who he has known since sixth grade, became a very good music producer and convinced him to try out rapping. Rap then became his newest stress reliever.
Eventually, Glasper wants to transition into a business and family man as his music excels. He can see himself resembling rappers like Jay-Z, Master P and 50 Cent in his future career.
“Rap means everything to me — it literally helped me cope with depression and it became my passion,” Glasper said. “Music is so important to me because it keeps me focused, humble and motivated. It’s my way of expressing myself and dealing with pain.”
In order to stay aligned and focused on school and rapping, Glasper follows this advice: Either have or find the perfect balance in your life. This statement helps him realize there will always be problems you cannot control within your life. Therefore, you can only control how you react to those situations while not letting one thing overwhelm another.
Glasper said this is how he keeps his mental state from being affected and distracted from what is important.
