On Nov. 4, 2016, the Distinguished Duke alumni came to York to speak to students about their time here at the school and how their life here changed them for the better.

In our fourth installment of “Under the Monocle: Dukes of Distinction edition,” we introduce you to the drummer of the band OK GO from the class of 1993, Dan Konopka.

While here, he spoke to a portion of the student body and a few of the music classes.

“It’s kind of funny,” Konopka said while speaking to Mr. Gemkow’s music production class. “I was never really in the music scene here at York. I focused mostly on art; I was on Art Staff and in AP Art, but I never really focused on music. In hindsight, I should have; that probably would have been a good idea, but most of the skills I use today I learned from Mr. Randle and Mr. Laliberte, my art teachers.”

The students present were in awe of the music videos he helped make for OK GO. One of the students’ favorite videos, and also the one that aided the band’s rise to fame, is “Here It Goes Again.”

“[Here It Goes Again] was my favorite video he showed us,” said Siena Olson, who saw Mr. Konopka in Symphonic Band. “I think it’s pretty cool that there’s an alum from York who is as interesting and driven as Mr. Konopka is. He kind of makes me want to try to make and produce my own music.”

Mr. Konopka was truly an inspiration to the students he spoke to. The best advice he could think to give students was to “think as far as you can to achieve. Be inspiring to others and be inspired by others to have the drive to do something. Continue forward and don’t look back.”