SOCIAL (UN)DISTANCE | By Pop College

111 W Lewis St,Greensboro NC 27406

11 April, 2021

Description

Join us Sunday, April 11th for a one-of-a-kind songwriting experience—a chance to unload your quarantine blues and sing them all at once. SOCIAL (UN)DISTANCE: GROUP SONGWRITING THERAPY & MUSIC-AS-HEALING SONGWRITING WORKSHOP | By Pop CollegeJoin us Sunday, April 11th for a one-of-a-kind pop-up songwriting experience—and the only Ivy League accredited songwriting workshop in the world, all from Greensboro for Greensboro! To honor the significance of a year of social distance, and to mark our public launch, Pop College is opening up our group songwriting therapy and workshop to  12 select writers. We're hosting two sessions for you to choose from:Post-Quarantine Group Songwriting Therapy*Sunday, April 11th | 12pm-4pm transform GSO | 111 W Lewis St,  Greensboro, NC 27406 Our first session is all about your year in quarantine. If you haven't gotten a chance yet to make something useful of your recent suffering, than songwriting is the perfect way to turn it into something beautiful, meaningful, and shareable. Through a methodology developed at Columbia University and New York City's Center for Social Innovation, we'll provide participants an environment and chance to engage in healing dialogue and use the subject matter as material for the songs. Had a bad breakup? Come talk about it and write a kickass song about it. Lost a loved one? Come open up with us and turn it into a soul-wrenching memorialized hit. Whatever it is your dealing with, we'll hold space for it, and coach you through turning it into a meaningful song.  *Pop College is not a licensed therapy office, nor do we offer licensed therapy. If you are concerned about putting yourself or others in danger please visit a physician or a mental health professional. Music-As-Healing Songwriting WorkshopApril 11th | 4pm-7pm transform GSO | 111 W Lewis St,  Greensboro, NC 27406 This second session, in recognition of the massive change we're all undergoing, will focus on change and music-as-healing. How do you deal with change? What changes are you going through right now? Relationships? Beliefs? Habits? What is the biggest change you've undergone in your life? How did it affect you and what did you learn from it?  Come armed with the answers to these questions and be ready to make a catchy and meaningful song about it. This workshop is especially useful for active songwriters who want a chance to collaborate with other writers under guidance from a songwriting professor and professional.  All of this for a one-day-only rate of $899. There's no catch—just a cool opportunity and a perfect chance to make some great art, to learn, and build lifelong connections. FAQ'sWho are you and what are your qualifications? Hey! My name is Afika, and I'm a professional songwriter and artist. I signed my first publishing deal with BMG Chrysalis in March of 2014 before I knew fully about the industry of songwriting, and since then have been blessed enough to have collaborated with numerous award winning acts like John Legend, Emily King, and Aloe Blacc. Recently I was even a featured talent on the new NBC hit songwriting competities series Songland, where I performed my song in front of my songwriting heroes Shane McAnally, Ester Dean, and Ryan Tedder, along with 7 million captive America viewers. In June 2017, I was gifted with the honor of my life so far when I was awarded the June Jordan Teaching Artist Fellowship by Columbia University, where in spring 2018 I got to teach several talented New York City songwriters in a course on pop songwriting with a social justice focus. This course and methodology is the foundation for these workshops I'm offering now, and was beta tested at the Center for Social Innovation in Chelsea, New York City. Pop College has been my songwriting and artist development company since 2014, and is my way of passing on the invaluable knowledge and experience I've gained by working in my greatest passion. Finally, I'm a guy who just loves music, loves the craft of songwriting, and loves people. I truly believe music has the power to shift the world, build bridges, and change lives, as my life is changed by music every time I complete a song that I believe in. **Neither Pop College nor Wick Media are licensed therapy companies, and I am in no way a licensed therapist. But I am 100% a guy who's built a happy life by using songwriting to help me deal with fatherlessness, heartbreak, grieving for friends and family, and any of the other trials life throws at us. To understand my philosophy on songwriting as healing, click here and check out what Wick Media is all about. By purchasing a ticket to this songwriting workshop, you are agreeing that you are hiring me as a songwriting instructor, and do not hold me accountable to any offically regulated standards for licensed therapists. Do I have to be a songwriter to come? No, everyone is welcome! While Pop College specifically instructs songwriters and artists, these pop-up workshops are all about extracting the human experience and turning them into song, and all of us are humans. Of course we encourage all songwriters to join us, as we'll cover the standard elements of professional songwriting, but these workshops are designed to serve the diverse people of New York City and build community around music.  Do I need to bring anything? Bring your favorite method of journaling: notebook and pen, laptop computer, or simply a cell phone if you prefer. If you have a portable, semi-compact instrument, feel free to bring it (guitar, ukelele, reasonably sized keyboard, etc.). I, your instructor Afika, will have my acoustic guitar with me, along with an assistant instructor who plays keyboard. If you have any questions about your instrument allowance, just email me at [email protected]. Do I have to come to both sessions? What if I can only make it to one? Most students do join for both sessions, and that's the best model for the continuity of the material and the unique relationships built between writers. However, join either workshop as your schedule permits—there's no official requirement that you attend both sessions. (Not to brag, but for our first ever public workshop every student who initially bought only tickets to Session 1 ended up cancelling their evening plans and staying for the second session.) What if I can't make this session? Will there be more workshops in the future? There will absolutely be more workshops in the future! There are three ways to stay in touch: go follow me on Instagram @__afika__, reach out to us on the Pop College page by clicking here, or email me directly with my contact information below.  Can I buy a ticket for someone else? Absolutely. The mental health conversation is slowly being destigmatized, and songwriting as therapy is a great way to get a loved one to engage about hard stuff in a safe environment.  Contact information Afika Nxumalo [email protected] IG: @__afika__