McNally Smith announces hip-hop diploma program

Toki Wright

Beginning with the September 2009 semester, St. Paul-based music college McNally Smith will offer the nation's first hip-hop oriented diploma program. Led by MC and community organizer Toki Wright, the program will span three semesters and cover music theory, spoken word, music history, rhythm studies, recording technology, and business. "In addition to Toki Wright, McNally Smith's faculty includes a number of highly accomplished artists from the hip-hop world," according to the press release. "Faculty members who will be teaching in the new diploma program include Dessa (a member of the Doomtree crew and published author), Sean McPherson (bassist and leader of the band Heiruspecs), Joe Mabbott (an engineer and producer for numerous projects, including multiple Atmosphere releases) and others."

For more information on McNally Smith's new hip-hop diploma program, check out the new page on their website.