Comedian Stephen Colbert addressed students at the University of Virginia’s “Final Exercises”, one day before the university’s graduation.
In Colbert’s speech, the U-Va. reject thanked the university and its students for inviting him to be the keynote speaker, which Colbert joked made him the valedictorian for the Class of 2013.
“I am as shocked as you are because I didn't make it to many classes this year," Colbert joked to members of the graduating class, as reported by The Huffington Post . "You guys must've really tanked your finals, thank you for that."
Colbert continued to poke fun at the graduates during the ceremony, which celebrates the four years the students spent at U-Va. He referenced the recent Time magazine article, which dubbed the millennials the “Me Me Me Generation.”
"So self obsessed -- tweeting your Vines, hashtagging your Spotifys and Snapchatting your YOLOs -- your generation needs everything to be about you," Colbert said in his address. "And that's very upsetting to us baby boomers because self-absorption is kind of our thing."
Colbert’s speech was not without a serious moment, in which he gave advice to the graduates, inspiring them to accept life’s challenges.
“Every generation must define itself,” he said, as quoted by the Washington Post . “If you must find your own path, and we have left you no easy path, then decide now to choose the hard path that leads to the life and the world that you want.”
Colbert’s speech in full can be viewed in the following video.