Paul Green
How does a philosophy student influence the future of hard rock music? In 1988, Paul Green was majoring in philosophy at the University of Pennsylvania, in Philadelphia. To make some money for his tuition, he offered to give kids guitar lessons in his apartment. From that tame start, Paul Green’s School of Rock Music has become wildly successful. With franchises in over 50 cities across the United States, including New York, Boston, Chicago and Los Angeles, the School of Rock Music has become the after-school destination for future rock ‘n rollers. The schools put into practice Green’s philosophy, inherited from John Dewey: you learn by doing. Early on, Green’s students would get together on the weekends to jam. This led to being invited to play at an art opening in Philadelphia. The event’s success convinced Green that the students need to perform as often as possible -- with professional sound, quality light shows, and when needed, the ubiquitous smoke machines. Students pay a flat $100 fee, for lessons in instruments, voice, and Green’s own “Philosophy for Ungrateful Teenagers.” Green told his alumni magazine, “When we took pictures, I said to one of our drummer kids, ‘Take your shift off and write STUD on your chest with lipstick.’ He said, ‘Ok, I have to call my mom.’ He called his mom, she says Ok, and he ends up in Spin magazine. But the best way to get noticed...is to perform well.” That, and learning by heart Black Sabbath and Led Zeppelin.
