Rapper's viral music video is your new ‘f*ck student loans’ anthem

“I don’t drive a Maybach, but I finished paying Sallie Mae back.”

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Complex Original

Image via Complex Original

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It's a feeling millions of borrowers would love to experience: finally paying off those student loans. 

Now, Louisiana rapper Dee-1 has not only created a catchy rap song celebrating that moment, but also debuted a hilarious music video to boot. 

"Sallie Mae Back" has become a viral anthem, which isn't surprising, considering more than 40 million borrowers currently owe $1.2 trillion in student debt, according to CNBC

"I finished!" Dee-1 proclaims as he exits an office in the video's opening. He tears up a piece of paper—what looks to be his final bill from Sallie Mae—which suddenly transforms into hundreds of dollar bills.

Standing in front of Louisiana State University's Tiger Stadium with a Maybach parked in the lot, Dee-1 raps, “For those who doubted me, yeah this is payback. And I've been on my grizzy since way back. No sir, and I don’t drive a Maybach. But guess what I did? I finished paying Sallie Mae back!"

It's hard not to bounce to the infectious chorus. 

I wanted to share my joy with the world And make it a celebratory anthem that would start a conversation that's important about the student loan debt crisis.

Speaking with NTRSCTN on the phone Friday, Dee-1 explained his motivation for making the video.

"I wanted to share my joy with the world," he said. "And make it a celebratory anthem that would start a conversation that's important about the student loan debt crisis, as well as people talking about being financially responsible."

He added, "That's what I try to do. I call it edu-tainment, you know educate people, but entertain them as well."

Without sounding cocky, Dee-1 admitted he knew the music video would be a hit if it was done well. After touring with Macklemore in the past and seeing how "a fun music video" like "Thrift Shop" changed the game, he wanted to share his own story in a different way.

On his Twitter feed, Dee-1 thanked everyone for supporting the video, which has already amassed more than 3 million views. 

Man YALL got it to 3 MILLION TOTAL VIEWS on #SallieMaeBack video in one week!!! Just saying thanks one last time. ✌️ https://t.co/ncHwDX5jwH

"This is real," he said. "This is me speaking my narrative, this is me speaking for a lot of people who can relate to this subject matter, and this is something that the world needs to be talking about." 

He chuckled, "I'm going to text it to Macklemore today."

Dee-1 is currently in Atlanta recording his debut LP, and while he's well aware of the viral nature of his video, he won't be checking YouTube comments anytime soon. He said he doesn't want anything positive or negative to influence what he's currently working on in the studio.

Still, "Sallie Mae Back" and the response it's gotten has raised the bar for the rapper.

"I feel motivated now because I feel this sets a new bar for me, and I want all of my content to resonate with people on this same type of level," he said.  

UPDATED 1:30 p.m. ET: This story has been updated to include comments from Dee-1.

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