Story via David Menconi, Down on Copperline, Orange County Arts Commission
Most of the time, Mark Katz teaches in pretty conventional spaces on the University of North Carolina’s Chapel Hill campus. But some of his classroom work happens elsewhere, in a place where he has to go through a metal detector and surrender his phone before entering. Orange Correctional Center, a minimum-security state prison in Hillsborough, is where Katz oversees his Carolina Prison Music Initiative, which teaches music to incarcerated people.
“It is strange and different in a lot of ways, a lot of rules I’m not normally subjected to while teaching at UNC,” he says. “I’m constantly having to check my assumptions about how people live. But all that melts away once you’re doing the work, whether it’s writing lyrics, teaching piano or how to read music, chatting with people about music. I wouldn’t say you forget you’re in a prison – you know, there’s barb wire outside – but the educational setting feels very familiar.”
Katz is John P. Barker Distinguished Professor of Music at UNC, and he has long worked at the intersection of music and real life, often reporting on difficult circumstances. It’s possible to trace much of his journey through the titles of some of his books: 2012’s “Groove Music: The Art and Culture of the Hip Hop DJ,” 2019’s “Build: The Power of Hip Hop Diplomacy in a Divided World” and 2024’s “Rap and Redemption on Death Row: Seeking Justice and Finding Purpose Behind Bars.”
That last title turned out to be especially formative for Katz. He co-wrote the book with Alim Braxton, a rapper and death-row inmate, and the project inspired him to propose an “Introduction To Rock” class at Orange Correctional. Primarily taught by one of Katz’s graduate students, it was UNC’s first music class to be offered in the state prison system.
Katz taught some of the sessions himself, and it went well enough for him to start up CPMI as an expanded, more ambitious program. It’s funded by a $100,000 Harvey Award grant, which the Carolina Center for Public Service awarded last November. That will cover the program’s first two years, and Katz is working on fund-raising to keep it going beyond the initial startup period.
UNC Professor Donovan Livingston teaching last fall’s “Introduction to Songwriting” class
“It’s been incredibly meaningful work for me, and it’s getting a lot of great feedback,” Katz says. “The students tell me it’s something they look forward to, and it builds skills, confidence, and camaraderie. It helps with social connection in prison, which is fraught and difficult. It also helps them express themselves in ways they’re not able to do in other modes. A lot of talent is locked up in this country.”
In last fall’s initial semester, a total of 15 people signed up for two CPMI classes, “Introduction to Music” and “Introduction to Songwriting.” One student was an individual who has been incarcerated at different prisons in North Carolina for the last 45 of his 65 years. The man’s father, 82 years old and not in the best of health, had never seen his son perform. But he was able to watch a video of an end-of-the-semester concert his son and other students put on in December, a deeply meaningful experience for both of them.
“I have no idea what he did to be in prison,” Katz says. “I admit I am curious, and I could look it up. But it’s not important for me to know that to be able to engage with him. It does not mean it’s irrelevant why he’s in prison, or that I excuse or condone anyone’s actions. But why they’re in there is not relevant to how I teach anyone. I don’t want that to define who they are or how I think about them.”
Since it’s early days with just one semester in the books, the program has yet to produce any real-world success stories among its participants. But one of last semester’s students was recently released and has aspirations for a music career. So the CPMI is adding a re-entry component to the curriculum, trying to help students make their way into the music business. It’s an important addition to the program, as finding employment after a prison sentence can be a massive challenge.
“What I want the public to take from this is it humanizes incarcerated people,” says Katz. “The carceral system in this country is massive and seems designed to disappear people. They’re defined solely by their crimes and residence in prison, and you generally only hear about them going in or coming out. But they are still fully human with complex lives. Yes, prison is about punishment. But rehabilitation should be part of it too, because at the very least it results in fewer crimes committed. There’s not enough focus on rehabilitation as part of the bigger picture. So I’m trying to be part of that solution.”
Mark Katz
(Story and all photos via Orange County Arts Commission)
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