On May 27, Rhiannon Giddens took the stage 24 years after attending her own graduation from Oberlin with a degree in vocal performance and marveled at the circuitous route the ship of her life had taken. “I’m standing here before you, the unlikeliest of things—an opera singer turned banjo player—on this day of your celebration.” During her moving speech, she shared a few core messages that she hoped students would take away from her remarks when they looked back on Commencement day: ⓵ Dive into whatever you want to do. But have “no expectations. . . Let passion rule your life but be smart about it.” ⓶ Be a lifelong learner—without fear. Decide to “continuously learn something new” but “you cannot be afraid to suck at it.” (Like picking up the banjo after being trained as an operatic soprano, for instance.) ⓷ Be open to the unknown. “It’s great to have a goal,” Gidden said, “but be aware that you may not know what the path to that goal will look like.” Taking an unplanned detour can...