Common will be helping in Starbucks’s nationwide anti-bias training today. Apparently, he’s longtime pals with Starbucks founder and CEO Howard Shultz. A Starbucks spokesperson explained to Page Six that the Chicago-born rapper and the billionaire businessman have been good friends for many years.

The rapper will reportedly appear as a guide in a series of anti-bias training videos sent out to 8,000 stores. The video tool is expected to be viewed by as many as 175,000 employees during the four-hour training.

In 2017, Howard Shultz said that Common was one of his favorite artists, explaining, “I have been so impressed with his level of commitment to race relations, humanity and certainly Opportunity Youth. He’s a very humble person who just wants to elevate the national conversation by using his music and his poetry.”

“People sometimes forget that love is at the root of our resistance. My love for my people serves as the fuel that fortifies my mission. It is our love for 12 year old Tamir Rice, who was gunned down by the police in less than two seconds that will not allow us to bury our anger. It is our love for Philando Castille, who was executed in front of his partner and his daughter, that keeps the people fighting back. It is our love for Stephon Clark, who was lynched in his grandma’s backyard that will not allow us to stop until we achieve liberation for our people. We protest because we love ourselves, and our people” @Kaepernick7. Congratulations to my Brother Colin Kaepernick on being honored this past week with Amnesty International’s 2018 Ambassador of Conscience Award, joining past recipients Harry Belafonte, Nelson Mandela and Malala Yousafzai.

A post shared by Common (@common) on Apr 26, 2018 at 7:22am PDT