Baden Württemberg Pop Academy

The Pop Academy of Baden-Württemberg is unique within Germany. It is located in the district of Jungbusch, Mannheim’s vibrant and multicultural dock area. The special thing about the building is the façade, which – if opened out – reveals an image of John Lennon’s face. The Pop Academy is a public university, founded in 2003 by the state of Baden-Württemberg. The project has been supported by noted concerns from the music world and artists such as Mannheim’s perhaps best-known musician, Xavier Naidoo, who is also a visiting lecturer at the Pop Academy.  The Pop Academy offers two courses of studies, which always start in the winter semester: “pop music design” and “music business.” For each course, some 30 places a year are available, and a full Bachelor of Arts degree takes six semesters. In the case of the pop music design course, the focus is on musical training, whereas in the music business course it is on management, marketing and media. Emphasis is laid on dovetailing theory and practice as closely as possible...