On Key: Artist Management Company Owner Shannon Canada Finds Perfect Fit With School of Rock

Shannon Canada is no stranger to the music industry. As the owner of a New Braunfels-based artist management company, 36D Management, and wife of touring musician Cody Canada, lead singer and guitarist of The Departed, music has always played an important role in Canada’s life and the lives of her children.

For years, both of Canada’s children were enrolled in private music lessons. While she was happy with the instructors and the level of attention the private lessons offered, she felt that something was missing—the group aspect of learning.

“The instructors were always great, but I just wanted my boys to experience sharing their passion for music with other kids their age,” said Canada. “I wanted them to have the opportunity to make friends while doing what they love to do.”

Canada eventually began considering opening a music performance school of her own, focusing on franchise opportunities that would be able to provide the group component she wanted to provide for her own kids.

“I was aware of the School of Rock locations nearby in Austin and San Antonio, but they were just a little too far of a drive,” said Canada. “So after doing some research and speaking with the corporate team, Cody and I decided to solve the problem and open a School of Rock of our own right here in New Braunfels.”

After several years of planning and finding the perfect location, the Canadas opened their School of Rock franchise in April of 2018 and soon received tremendous positive feedback from the community. Within the first couple of months since opening its doors to the community, Canada’s New Braunfels location has already had over 50 children registered for lessons, which Canada partially attributes to her and her husband’s strong marketing outreach.

Before opening, the couple made an effort to visit as many schools and community groups as possible to raise awareness about their new music education endeavor. Shannon also knew the importance of staying as active as possible on their School of Rock’s social media pages, giving parents a look into what School of Rock is all about so they could determine if it would be a good fit for their child’s needs.

“What inspired Shannon to open her own School of Rock is exactly the type of story we want driving our business,” shared Tony Padulo, the brand’s Chief Development Officer. “Not only is Shannon enthusiastic about the industry and helping drive the youth music movement, but she’s also an experienced business owner that truly embodies everything we look for in a franchisee. Of course, as a franchise, we can provide the system and the support, but what really drives the School of Rock brand are our franchisees who want to make a difference in their local community, and Shannon is doing just that.”

In a time where music programs in public schools are getting cut more frequently, the international franchise is finding it even more important to expand its reach across the U.S. and globe.

“There are always going to be kids that feel like they don’t quite fit in at school, or they just don’t have an outlet to be themselves,” said Canada. “But with School of Rock, we’ve created a safe place for kids of all ages, all different backgrounds, to just be themselves, make friends, rock out and even learn something while they’re at it.”