I've always fancied having a go at busking, > and was wondering if any of our listers have done it - as there are so many > hugely accomplished musicians and singers, I'd be surprised if the answer > were no. How much dosh did you make??
I used to go out to Buckhead (where all the bars and ritzy restaurants are-yuppie hangout) and play on weekends from 10ish till 2, sometimes later...I didn't do so bad-I would make on an average around $50 most nights which works out to be about $12/hour. Not bad for playing on the street. The bad thing is I was playing for very long periods of time so these nights would leave me completely worn out and worthless the next day or so. Plus I was playing for a lot of drunk people who often probably thought I was homeless or desperate cause in their minds they couldn't think of any other reason why someone would do this. You really have to be kind of brave. I know in other places where busking is more common, people don't assume that but here it was different. Some nights it was really interesting. Once a black man handed me a cold beer as a hooker tried to sing on the mic with me. Another time, someone left me a full bag of food from a nearby restaurant. Once, really late into the night, this drunk man handed me a $20 dollar bill and said,"Now I'm giving you a 20 but I'm not the devil," and walked off laughing madly.(reference to "Friend of the Devil" for those who don't know). The night the Braves won the world series(1995) I played in Buckhead and made $100. Most I ever made from busking. I played in Paris and made nothing. Made about 10-15 dollars in Cambridge Square once. Didn't do so well in New Orleans. Victor, leaving for Greenville soon --- Victor Johnson --- [EMAIL PROTECTED] Visit http://www.cdbaby.com/victorjohnson Look for the new album "Parsonage Lane" in March 2003 Produced by Chris Rosser at Hollow Reed Studios
