STEVIE WONDER GETS HONORARY DEGREE AND GIVES STUDENTS IMPROMPTU PERFORMANCE.

STEVIE WONDER surprised students at a university in New Orleans, Louisiana with an impromptu performance on Thursday (12May11) as he was handed an honorary degree at the facility. The Superstition hitmaker, who turns 61 on Friday (13May11), was handed the certificate at Tulane University, with Nobel Laureate Walter Gilbert and journalist Cokie Roberts also receiving degrees.

Wonder stunned the crowd at the ceremony when he started singing along to Michael White's Original Liberty Jazz Band and singer Topsy Chapman, before breaking into a rendition of his hit You Are The Sunshine of My Life. The superstar also recited the words to his new track, Ten Billion Hearts, reports the Associated Press. Spokesperson for the university, Michael Strecker, says the students were given an "unexpected treat".