When Chance the Rapper announced last week on Twitter that he was looking for an intern, thousands of young people across the US hoped he would take a chance on them.
Chance encouraged applicants to submit their resumes formatted as “creative decks, pitches or proposals” and one applicant, superfan Negele Hospedales, took keen measures to stand out from the crowd by creating an entire website dedicated to winning him the role.
Chance was criticised by – among others – hip-hop group Cypress Hill, who publicly queried whether a candidate with the required skillset should properly be called an intern. Chance later told his Twitter followers that the role “doesn’t really have an official title yet. But it is a ‘job’.”
The hip-hop star is not the first celebrity to invite applications from the public. In 2015, England footballer Jermain Defoe advertised for a position to be his “24/7 personal assistant”. The job entailed creating “a global brand for the Jermain Defoe name” as well as the more quotidian, “drycleaners, gardeners, house refurbishments, sourcing interior designers and everyday task etc”. At £60,000 a year, it did at least pay well.
Another celebrity job listing – for Parks and Recreation star Rob Lowe, according to TMZ, although this was denied by the actor’s representatives – asked for a PA who can “ensure that the CLIENT HAS A DINNER PLAN IF ARRIVING HOME LATER THAN 8 PM in the evening” as well as the physical capacity to lift 25lbs. Presumably that’s to lug around the saxophone in St Elmo’s Fire in case of emergencies.
