Cordae Discusses How A 'Hi-Level Mindset' Can Help Honor Your Full Potential

The 2x GRAMMY Award-nominated rapper Cordae made his TED Talk debut Monday and discussed how having a “Hi-Level Mindset.” can help you realize your full potential.

Cordae explains how he picked up the mindset from his mother and translated it into his aspirations through disciplined actions.

The 24-year-old broke down how his mother overcame obstacles after having a child at 16 years old and provided a better life for him.

“I want to tell you about the original creator of the hi-level mindset, and that’s my mom and she doesn’t even know it. My mom had me when she was 16-years-old,” he said, “She was a single mom with all the odds stacked against her. And yet, from an unbothered perspective, I’ll like to say she did a pretty decent job.

“We lived in some pretty terrible neighborhoods,” Cordae continued. “I switched elementary schools about five different times. I remember one time her car had gotten stolen twice in one week. She overcame circumstances, obstacles, her environment and negativity. As I watched our living situation get better and better as the years went by, now that’s hi-level.”

Cordae said that although his mother did not purposefully teach him this mindset, he learned by watching her persevere.

“Now, the Hi-Level mindset wasn’t something that she directly taught me or purposefully instilled in me,” Cordae said. “But something I learned from simply observation.”

The rapper then goes into detail about the Hi-Level mindset and how to achieve it.

“The Hi-Level mindset is a philosophy; it’s a wavelength to apply to your everyday thoughts and regimen. The Hi-Level mindset will be of great service to you, especially when things aren’t going as planned,” Cordae said. “These trying times that I speak of, or life testers as you may, are what truly make it man or woman.”

“Actually, scratch that,” he continued. “How we handle these lifetimes—these trying times or life testers, is what decides a person’s destiny. Which brings me to step one of the Hi-Level mindset and that always remains positive.”

Cordae shared that in middle and high school, he was voted “most likely to be famous” and immediately planned to become famous with his music career after graduating. However, it didn’t work out as he had planned.

“So I went to college, and as soon as I went to college, boy did life hit me hard. Within the first couple of weeks of school, one of my best friends, who I call my brother, had gotten sentenced to 24 years in prison,” Cordae said. “I had gotten detained for driving with a suspended license, among other things—like having a pound of weed in the car before it was legal.”

“And my grandmother had passed. Not to mention I was already a terrible student with horrific grades and a broke teenager,” he added.

Cordae chose to remain positive during those times of despair, releasing three mixtapes that didn’t exceed his expectations.

“This almost pushed me to the brinks of quitting and insanity,” Cordae said. “But the Hi-Level mindset made me think, ‘Man, these misfortunes are going to make my triumph story a lot cooler.’ I used this as fuel to the fire—motivation if you will. It made me think, you know, life is just a book; not every chapter is going to be perfect. But it is how it ends.”

“Which brings me to the second step of the Hi-Level mindset; always be intentional with your desires,” he said.

Cordae concluded the 12-minute seminar with a photo of his vision board and encouraged the audience to write down their goals and start their day by reading their goals and dreams aloud. He shared a Yiddish proverb he learned through rapper ASAP Rocky that convinced him not to cancel a tour he was headlining after receiving mixed reviews for the first time as a major label artist.

“But then I heard this Yiddish proverb that ASAP Rocky actually told me about at a most important time and I am sure he didn’t even know it. It’s ‘we plan, and God laughs.’ And that made me think the Hi-Level mindset is not a recipe for perfection but a commitment to honor your potential and what you have to offer the world. Don’t let your small failures make you lose sight on your bigger picture. I’ll leave you all with this we only have one life to live. One hundred and 10 years maximum if you’re a health guru and you have great health insurance,” Cordae said. “How are you going to maximize your time on this earth? Do you want your name to be remembered long after you’re gone? The Hi-Level mindset is about doing everything that you put your hands on at the highest level that you’re capable of doing.”

Think of your life as a book,” he continued. “Again, each chapter isn’t going to be perfect. But how do you want your story to end? In anguish? A bunch of what-ifs? Or leaving a legacy? I choose legacy. The Hi-Level way.”

In January, Cordae released his acclaimed sophomore album, “From A Birds Eye,” inspired by a trip to Africa, losing a friend and evolving as an artist. The 14-track album features the likes of Stevie Wonder, Lil Wayne, Freddie Gibbs, Eminem, H.E.R., Lil Durk, Gunna, Ant Clemons and Roddy Ricch.