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Pitbull to be paid $130,000 for UF talk

Daniel Smithson
daniel.smithson@gvillesun.com
Pitbull performs in concert at New York City's Madison Square Garden on June 30, 2017. [Photo by Charles Sykes/Invision/AP]

With the money University of Florida’s ACCENT Speakers Bureau is paying music artist Pitbull to come to the university and speak, he should be able to turn any doghouse into a penthouse.

Armando Christian Pérez, better known by his stage name Pitbull, will be paid $130,000 to speak at UF on Oct. 2 at the Phillips Center, according to a contract obtained by The Sun.

Pitbull's ACCENT talk is being made in collaboration with the Hispanic Heritage Month, a UF student-run celebration that tries to engage, empower and entertain the Hispanic and Latino UF student population, according to its Facebook page. In fall 2017, 18 percent of UF's students were considered Hispanic or Latino.

Hispanic Heritage Month will pay a portion of the $130,000 paid to Pitbull, said ACCENT chairman Gregory Wolf, but it's unclear how much.

Wolf said he expects the event to fill the Phillips Center, which can seat 1,700. So, not every UF student will be able to attend.

The $130,000 spent to bring Pitbull to UF, however, is well worth it for the UF students who do get to attend the talk, Wolf said.

It’s "invaluable" to be exposed to that “type of person,” Wolf said.

ACCENT pays speakers using funds created by UF students’ activity fees. Students pay $19.06 per credit hour in activity fees and ACCENT's budget is derived from that.

“The University of Florida is a widely diverse place,” he said. “With the diversity initiatives that student government and even the president’s office are pushing for, I wanted to get involved using my (chairman) position.

“Pitbull is not someone just famous for his super stardom of musical talent. (Pitbull) brings so much to the Hispanic community.”

Pitbull is considered a big name in hip hop and rap music. He started a charter school in Miami, recently drawing attention from United States Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos, who visited his SLAM Charter School in Miami last year.

Wolf said Pitbull was a top pick among UF’s Hispanic organizations for ACCENT’s next speaker. Wolf said he wasn't sure if the speaking fee paid to Pitbull is the highest the bureau has paid, but said it could be.

Movie actor Paul Rudd and New York Times culture reporter Dave Itzkoff were paid a combined $90,000 to speak in 2016. ACCENT paid Saturday Night Live comedian Jay Pharoah $52,000 to talk in July.

“Goosebumps” author R.L. Stein was paid $27,500 to talk last October.

Pitbull’s ACCENT talk, moderated by UF Journalism Department Chairman Ted Spiker, will last about an hour, followed by a 15-minute student question-and-answer session. Spiker won't be paid to moderate, Wolf said.

Doors open for the event at 7:05 p.m. Oct. 2, and the show will start at 7:45 p.m, Wolf said.

The event is free and open to the public, but guests must have tickets.

Student ticket distribution begins Friday at 10 a.m. at the Reitz Union. Any other unclaimed tickets available will be distributed to the general public at the event Oct. 2.

Pitbull, also known by the monikers Mr. Worldwide and Mr. 305, has been known to charge a lot for appearances and for using his "likeness."

He found himself at the center of a political storm in 2016 when state officials found out he'd been secretly paid $1 million by the state tourism agency Visit Florida, for a tourism marketing video and to promote the state on social media.

Visit Florida had refused to release details of the contract, calling the deal a protected “trade secret,” The Miami Herald reported.

Details of the contract were later revealed via a Pitbull Twitter post.

In past years, students have voted on who they wanted hear speak at ACCENT talks. Speaking fees were negotiated between speakers' management and ACCENT.

Pitbull took to Twitter Tuesday afternoon to announce his talk at UF. He tweeted: "Headed to @UF next week to bring a little #305tothe352!"

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