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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, and Jordan became friends in second grade at a Baltimore gifted academy. James joined in third grade after moving from England to Baltimore, completing the five-person group.

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.”

Mason’s friends saved his DJ name, Mase Effect, in the nickname field of his contact card on their phones.

Jordan was the group’s pragmatist. He and Logan were the friends the others asked, “What’s next?” or “What’s left to do?”

In their friendship with Jacob Keller, the boys welcomed his company without expecting more conversation, energy, or participation than he could give. They valued his presence and allowed him to join quietly, watch, or rest. Their consideration for his capacity was a reason Jacob chose to spend time with them, extending beyond the gatherings during his recovery from hospitalization.

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 played small forward for the Georgetown Hoyas. After college, he joined the Washington Wizards as a second-round NBA draft pick.
  • 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.

Families

Jordan’s mother, Scarlet, was close to Julia Weston and the other Ride-or-Die mothers. Mason’s mother was Janine.

Shared History

During adolescence, the friends held mattress parties at Malik’s home, dragging mattresses into the living room so that all five could sleep together in the same space. All five boys snored, with the volume varying from one member of the group to another. Logan’s usual snoring was quieter than the other four boys’ and predominantly nasal in sound; Malik typically snored with his mouth open.

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.

Mason and James, the group’s two White members, both tried speaking up about Logan’s bullying without being taken seriously. Around Mason’s fourteenth birthday during the COVID-19 pandemic, the group also supported him through worsening bullying about his body size. The dismissal of his efforts on Logan’s behalf left Mason afraid that reporting his own harassment would invite ridicule.

From third grade onward, Malik, Mason, Jordan, and James were regulars at 2847 Roslyn Avenue. Nathan and Julia functioned as second parents to all four. The boys called Julia “Mama Weston” or “Mama W” and called Nathan “Dad” in the household’s ordinary family register. “Mr. Weston” was a deliberate way to tease Nathan because he disliked being called that; “yes, sir” and “yes, ma’am” remained the group’s respectful forms of address when the context called for them.

Malik, Mason, Jordan, and James joined Logan on a ten-day Caribbean cruise during spring break in 2024, shortly after his sixteenth birthday. They explored the teen area while Logan recovered from boarding, bet him into a solo karaoke performance, celebrated his duet with Nia, and were the first people he told about his kiss with her on the final night.

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.

During an afternoon visit to the Weston home while Jacob was still recovering from his hospitalization, Malik, Mason, Jordan, and James apologized directly to him. Malik took responsibility for his inaccurate judgment that Jacob had been using Logan and rejected Jacob’s suggestion that being accustomed to such treatment made the apology unnecessary. Jacob stayed while the friends played video games and eventually fell asleep against Logan, his first time sleeping in the full group’s company.

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