As a professor, Methodology Man isn’t calling attendance, he doesn’t care who reveals up late, and he rattling certain isn’t going via bullet factors on a syllabus. Carrying glasses, a child blue Versace t-shirt and a navy baseball cap with the rim to the again, Meth is sitting down, fastidiously however effortlessly rolling a blunt as he prepares to handle the scholar physique.
No, this isn’t some scene from How Excessive. That is actual life, and Methodology Man is the teacher tonight on a category held by way of Zoom referred to as “Rhymecology.”
“The anxiousness within the studio bruh, as a result of Doc is unbelievable,” Meth says, giving props to his How Excessive co-star and longtime buddy Redman, when questioned by a pupil about collaborating. “I give credit score the place credit score is due. That dude, he’s music… The explanation I stated ‘anxiousness’ is since you need to be at your finest…. This n—a goes within the sales space spitting straight ether each f—in’ day. And also you gotta sustain, son. Even outdoors the studio, onstage. He helped my artistic course of a lot. Massive bruh molded me into the MC I’m at this time.”
All through the evening, Meth shares revelations, recommendation, tutelage and insights on every little thing from the genius of rap battle MCs (“Essentially the most sensible rappers on the planet — these muthaf—-s is driving the tradition proper now”), to being “depressing” for eight straight years making music, to setting up hooks, to his purpose for his legendary hip-hop household, Wu-Tang Clan. And that’s the Wu making it into the Rock and Roll Corridor of Fame.
“I need that for my crew,” Meth declares. “Now we have a really robust stake in that.”
Rhymecology, devoted to the psychological well being facet in hip-hop, is simply one of many programs laid out as a part of the curriculum on the digital college, Pendulum Ink Academy. At Pen Ink, one of many prime objectives is “nurturing creativity via lyricism.”
Pendulum was conceived, developed and co-cultivated by Bronx wordsmith Mickey Factz, who ascended in rap through the rise of the weblog period within the mid 2000s. He shortly grew to become adept at multimedia advertising and marketing expertise (Mickey’s advertising and marketing agency and indie label GFC New York had Nipsey Hussle on their roster of purchasers on the lookout for assist with branding), and showcased his wordplay via his freestyles, mixtapes and music collaborations, which helped him landed on the duvet of XXL’s coveted Freshman Problem in 2009.
Alongside along with his cowl stars Wale, Child Cudi, and Curren$y, Mickey was tapped to be a pacesetter of the brand new college. Quick ahead to 2019: Mickey was 10 years faraway from being up subsequent, and considering what was going to be subsequent in his life.
“It was an epiphany second,” Factz, sitting in his Atlanta excessive rise workplace, recollects. After a decade within the sport, he felt he has reached his ceiling. “I used to be like, ‘I type of really feel like this a dead-end job for me proper now. I’m working album to album. This doesn’t make sense to me. What am I gonna do when it’s time to retire?’ I began fascinated about retirement rather a lot. So I used to be like, ‘You recognize what? I must retire into instructing.’”
Mickey started researching how he might really train and not using a diploma, and got here to the conclusion that, sans the credentials, it was virtually unimaginable. The rapper (born Mark Williams) had attended NYU and was a paralegal at a legislation agency earlier than dropping out of college and quitting his job to focus solely on his rap profession in 2007. Even when he had graduated NYU and have become a lawyer like he was monitoring to do, Mickey says there weren’t too many faculties prepared to make hip-hop an precise course in 2019 anyway.
Then the pandemic hit, and whereas so many people had been sequestered at dwelling, Mickey locked his deal with MasterClass. Hip-hop icons equivalent to Nas and Timbaland had been lecturing nearly for a payment. Factz felt he discovered his pathway to rap retirement.
“I DMed them, ‘Yo, I’d like to work with you guys,’” Factz recollects. “They hit me again a pair hours later like, ‘Yo man, don’t name us. We’ll name you.’ That was January 2021.
“I’m from the Bronx, man,” Mickey continues with a light-weight chuckle, earlier than revealing his discovered additional motivation within the wake of MasterClass’ rejection. “I stated, ‘Aight. I’m gonna make my very own MasterClass.’”
On Dec. 1, 2021, Mickey lectured an internet class of 10 individuals — he was employed for $250 to talk for an hour. Factz realized that not solely might he train college students, however he knew his dream might develop. “You’ll be able to’t do a MasterClass of hip-hop in a single class,” he defined. “It’s unimaginable by way of writing.”
Factz reached out to his buddy, battle rapper Chilla Jones, for assist. Jones started to contact a few of his associates, and shortly a five-man workforce was fashioned. Collectively they got here up with an eight-month curriculum, and Pendulum Ink Academy was created.
Together with the core mind belief of the Academy (all of whom train courses), Pendulum boasts licensed faculty professors on their employees, and programs like Rap Concept, the place the scholars be taught cadence and tips on how to rhyme on beat. Rap Concept is taught by jazz musician Comikbook Cam. In the meantime, Chilla teaches Superior Method: Pendulum Ink has 35 rap methods copyrighted, and put names to expertise that MCs have been displaying their complete careers.
“A few of these programs had been rejected at universities,” Factz says. “Criminology in Hip-Hop was rejected by three universities. So I stated to our professor Ahmariah Jackson, ’Hear, come right here. I’ll pay you. Educate it as soon as a month.’”
Pendum Ink launched final February, and Factz recollects not understanding precisely what to anticipate. “February twenty fourth, we had our first individual enroll,” he says. “They paid the complete tuition, $2,000. Then every single day after the twenty fourth, for about 45 days, individuals had been paying. I used to be like, ‘Alright, we acquired one thing right here.’ And thoughts you, that is the beta [stage], simply six programs: Rap Concept, Superior Rap Strategies, Rhymecology, Mickey Cash Class, Battle Rap, Content material Creation Class.”
Quickly after, Mickey signed up a few of his shut associates and friends to be visitor lecturers for these courses. “I informed them I had a college after which I walked them via it, after which I requested them in the event that they need to train or give a lecture,” he remembers. “They stated ‘Sure.’ I stated, ‘Good, as a result of I pay.’ I discover it simpler for them to do that than to do a document.”
Phonte from Little Brother, Masta Ace and Cory Gunz had been all amongst his first cellphone calls. Fittingly, Inspectah Deck was Pendulum’s very first visitor lecturer: Wu-Tang Clan’s Enter The Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) was the primary album Mickey purchased along with his personal cash as a child. “Its important to carry again the artwork kind, and Pendulum Ink does that,” Deck says.
“It’s a present to obtain instruction from a dwelling legend,” says Pendulum pupil, Al Billups. He signed up and took part within the current Rhymecology class with Methodology Man. “The chance to peel again the layers of a composition with the precise creator is a deal with for any fan of the tradition. Collaborating in a Pendulum Ink session uncovered me to an unbelievable tutorial ecosystem that’s designed to assist MC’s acquire a greater understanding across the nuances of lyricism.”
Pendulum Ink’s commencement is about for February 26, 2023; Bun B is confirmed as graduation speaker. Veteran hip-hop journalist Sway has additionally been tapped to take part within the ceremony together with Massive Ok.R.I.T., Stalley and Skyzoo.
Pendulum Ink additionally simply began a nonprofit group referred to as Pen Friends, the place children from 7 to 17 can discover ways to MC. Pen Friends will even function house for recognized MCs to discover ways to train. Factz says his hope is that a few of these MCs could possibly be professors at universities someday.
“I need them to have a crash course in our lexicon,” he notes. “You are able to do it your individual manner, however construction is essential.”
One among Pen Ink’s college students has been employed at Fredrick Pilot Center Faculty in Boston, and is instructing among the Academy’s packages to children starting from 11 to 14 years previous. In the meantime, Factz himself has accepted a suggestion to show on the College of Hawaii, and can train one month at a time for the entire of March, July and November.
Pendulum Ink has additionally delved into the precise ink sport with their very personal textbook coming subsequent 12 months, that includes a foreword written by Massive Daddy Kane. The roster of recent professors coming to show in 12 months two of the academy is shaping as much as be spectacular: Massive Boi, Pharoahe Monch, Rah Digga, Ok.R.I.T., Lord Finesse, AZ and DMC are all locked in to present lectures, whereas Black Thought has agreed to be the 2024 graduation speaker on the commencement.
“Ten years from now, I’ll be 50,” says Factz, “and God prepared, I’ll have three [physical] colleges throughout the nation. I’ll have one within the Bronx by 2027, then one right here in Atlanta and one in L.A.” The previous Freshman nonetheless performs reveals and places out his music independently, however says, “I need to have colleges for hip-hop and lyricism. I need to have the ability to create jobs and alternatives for youthful college students and older individuals to have the ability to make cash from. It’s essential that the tradition stays inside with us. As a result of let me let you know one thing, if I didn’t do that, someone else not of the tradition would’ve performed it.”
