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The Ride or Dies

The Ride-or-Dies was the informal name for the childhood friend group formed by Logan Weston, Malik Carter, Mason Brooks, Jordan Wells, and James Pennington in Baltimore.

Overview

Logan, Malik, Mason, Jordan, and James became friends in third grade at a Baltimore gifted academy after James moved from England to Baltimore.

The group remained connected after the boys moved to Edgewood High School and Baltimore School for the Arts. Their messages and calls used several names, including “Edgewood Elite,” “Core Four + Me,” and “GRID TEAM.”

Membership

  • Logan Weston attended Edgewood, graduated as valedictorian in 2025, and enrolled at Howard University.
  • Malik Carter attended Edgewood, graduated as salutatorian in 2025, completed his undergraduate education at American University, completed law school, and became a lawyer.
  • Mason Brooks attended Edgewood and remained in Baltimore after graduation while beginning modest music-production work. The group’s loud trash-talker and deadpan comedian, he regularly provoked Jordan into sports arguments and paired with James for physical and verbal comedy.
  • Jordan Wells attended Edgewood, captained its basketball team, and enrolled at Georgetown University.
  • James Pennington attended Baltimore School for the Arts and enrolled at NYU Tisch School of the Arts. He attended Edgewood’s 2025 graduation as a guest.

Shared History

During the gifted-academy years, Mason urged Logan to save threatening messages and reported his bullying to a teacher. The friends remained part of Logan’s support system after the school failed to protect him.

Malik, Mason, Jordan, and James joined Logan on a Caribbean cruise for his sixteenth birthday in February 2024.

After Jacob Keller experienced a seizure and cardiac arrest in 2024, Logan asked Malik, Mason, Jordan, and James to become Jacob’s reliable crew. All four agreed. Their later support was imperfect rather than uniform: before the medical crisis, Malik had dismissed Jacob’s absence as skipping, and Mason had responded, “Who cares?” In later scenes, the group offered practical help and included Jacob in its gatherings.

In 2025, Mason organized a multiplayer gathering in the Weston family’s basement. Jordan and Malik debated basketball statistics while Mason complained about the delay and tried to begin the game. Logan continued working until the noise overwhelmed him and he shouted at the group; the friends left while Jacob stayed to help him.

The Edgewood members graduated in spring 2025, with James attending as a guest. That summer, the group gathered at the Weston home before Logan, Malik, Jordan, and James left Baltimore for college. Mason remained in the city.

Organizations and Collectives Friend Groups