Lupe is the explains that he’s the “dean” of the school of hard knocks. A dean is “a person with significant authority over a specific academic unit, or over a specific area of concern, or both”
Lupe could also be referring to the Islamic term, Deen. Which translates in to “religion”, but also refers to the path Muslims follow to stay on the righteous path. So, it’s another double entendre
OR, a reference to the song “Hard Knock Life” by Jay-Z, because Jay-Z was the one that helped sign Lupe and put him on the map.