LeBron James Gives A Powerful Speech During His ‘Graduate Together’ Special: ‘It’s Up To You Guys’

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LeBron James congratulated graduating high school seniors in a powerful speech during Graduate Together: America Honors the High School Class of 2020. — A star-studded televised ceremony for the millions of students who were unable to receive their diplomas in person, alongside their classmates. The NBA star opened the special letting the class of 2020 know that, “tonight’s for you!” He urged fans to help in their communities amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Our schools are our safety net. Our people build our communities and as you continue to build…  As you celebrate tonight do not forget your safety  net — every teacher, coach and pastor — them along with friends and family .. accept every challenge, strive for greatness, and I know thats the last thing you guys want to think about …. it’s the truth, the community needs you,” he said during a speech, in which he rocked a blue blazer and a full beard. “It’s time to chase every dream, accept every challenge, strive for greatness, honor every promise, and recommit to your community.”

In addition to his cameo, the Lakers legend is the one responsible for putting on tonight’s event. The LeBron James Family Foundation partnered with the XQ Institute and the Entertainment Institute Foundation to present Graduate Together — airing across multiple television networks and online platforms via streaming services. LeBron’s SpringHill Entertainment is behind the production of the show, which includes commencement addresses and more celebrity appearances by Kevin Hart, Maren Morris, Olivia Wilde, Megan Rapinoe and more. Zendaya, Pharrell Williams and Jonas Brothers are all set to appear.

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"It’s time to chase every dream, accept every challenge, strive for greatness, honor every promise, and recommit to your community." #graduatetogether🎓

A post shared by UNINTERRUPTED (@uninterrupted) on May 16, 2020 at 10:29pm PDT

(Video credit: Uninterrupted/Instagram) 

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"It’s time to chase every dream, accept every challenge, strive for greatness, honor every promise, and recommit to your community." @KingJames #GraduateTogether

A post shared by UNINTERRUPTED (@uninterrupted) on May 16, 2020 at 9:44pm PDT

(Video credit: Uninterrupted/Instagram) 

LeBron is already heavily involved in supporting the education of young people with his I Promise School, which opened in 2018 in his hometown of Akron, Ohio. The state of the art school focuses on at-risk third and fourth-grade students. However, the I Promise School is set to expand to teach grades first through eighth by 2022.

The 3-time NBA champion promoted the special with a high school portrait of himself, which he shared to his Twitter account at the end of April. Congratulations to the graduating high school class of 2020!