August 31, 2026
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The Jaelan Phillips Foundation and Rhymes with Reason, the educational technology platform that helps students build literacy and vocabulary skills through popular music, have launched a new partnership to expand engaging literacy support for students across the Charlotte community.
The initiative will introduce Rhymes with Reason to Northridge Middle School, giving students access to short, interactive vocabulary and reading lessons built around clean excerpts from the music they already know and enjoy.
Founded by Austin Martin, Rhymes with Reason uses contemporary music lyrics as a bridge into academic vocabulary, reading comprehension, and writing. Students work through bite-sized lessons that introduce new words through song lyrics, definitions, sample sentences, context clues, and comprehension activities, helping make literacy instruction feel more familiar and relevant.
The partnership closely aligns with the Jaelan Phillips Foundation’s mission to empower young people through programs that create meaningful connections and opportunities for success. The Foundation places a particular emphasis on music education and access, using music as a catalyst for creativity, mentorship, and youth development while partnering with community organizations to expand its impact.
For Phillips, now a linebacker for the Carolina Panthers, the Charlotte partnership also brings the Foundation’s youth-focused work into the community where he currently plays.
“Music is a great way to get kids excited about learning and literacy, and I think Rhymes With Reason is doing some really great work to make that happen. I’m excited to support students here in Charlotte and hopefully give them an opportunity to explore something they enjoy while opening up new possibilities for them” — Jaelan Phillips
The partnership comes as Charlotte continues to confront persistent literacy disparities. Recent Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools reading data shows that fewer than half of elementary and middle school students are meeting state reading proficiency standards, with particularly significant gaps between higher-income communities in south Charlotte and lower-income neighborhoods across the city’s “crescent.” Older students also continue to experience widening literacy challenges even as some early-grade indicators have improved.
These disparities make student engagement and access to supplemental literacy support especially important. Rhymes with Reason is designed to complement existing classroom instruction by helping educators connect academic vocabulary to the music and technology students already interact with outside of school.
“We are incredibly excited for the opportunity to partner with the Jaelan Phillips Foundation to support students in Charlotte. Jaelan’s unique commitment to music education makes this a dream collaboration bringing together a recognizable superstar with a genuine passion for the exact impact area in which we specialize. Charlotte is a city ripe for a literacy boost and an infusion of new, exciting ways to engage students. We are thrilled to grow alongside Jaelan and join him on a mission to transform student engagement and academic performance through music in his new home of Charlotte,” said Austin Martin, Founder and CEO of Rhymes with Reason.
The initial rollout will begin at Northridge Middle School during the week of September 8, with plans to serve 250 students during the first phase of the partnership. Participating educators and program leaders will receive onboarding, implementation support, and access to student progress data as students move through Rhymes with Reason’s vocabulary and literacy lessons.
Together, the Jaelan Phillips Foundation and Rhymes with Reason aim to give Charlotte students another pathway into literacy, one that starts with something many of them already have a strong connection to: music.
The Jaelan Phillips Foundation is dedicated to empowering youth through programs that transcend social and economic barriers and create meaningful connections and opportunities for success. The Foundation supports young people through music education, music industry access, athletic programs, and community partnerships designed to inspire, educate, and mentor the next generation of artists, athletes, and community change-makers. Its music initiatives use music as a catalyst for connection and opportunity, including partnerships that provide young people with access to songwriting, production, mentorship, live entertainment, and music-industry experiences.
Founded by Austin Martin, Rhymes with Reason is an educational technology company that helps students build vocabulary, literacy, and reading skills through the music they already know and love. The platform combines clean excerpts from contemporary music with definitions, context clues, sample sentences, and interactive learning activities designed to make academic vocabulary more relevant and engaging for today’s students. Rhymes with Reason partners with schools, districts, foundations, professional sports organizations, and youth-serving organizations across the country to help students see that academic achievement is within reach through the music and culture already familiar to them.
Jaelan Phillips Foundation
Ashlyn Houston
ahouston@winsg.com
Rhymes with Reason
Molly Morrison, Marketing Lead
molly@rhymeswithreason.com
