Hugely successful street performers have been able to make a living from their art and have even become so famous that they have had their own TV shows. Here are some of the top tips for those who want to get started as a busker:
1. Find your niche
2. Where to perform
3. Location, location, location
4. Get a permit
If you’re looking to get into busking, here a few tips to get you started. Instead of going through the learning curve myself and making all the mistakes, I asked around and found some great tips from people who have already been through it.
Buskers are street performers that entertain pedestrians in exchange for donations. Some live off the money they make from performing in the streets, others do it as a side hustle or just for fun.
I was fortunate enough to be able to catch up with two buskers and ask them about their experience with getting into the business.
1. Find a Place You Can Perform
When you start out as a busker, it is best to find a place where there are lots of people walking by but where you won’t be in anyone’s way. Touristy areas are good. Markets and shopping strips are also good. Look for areas that have some shelter from the weather, and make sure you have an exit strategy. If you set up in the middle of a busy street and then draw a crowd, how will they get out?
2. Choose A Good Act
A good act will suit your personality, be easy to do, be safe, and draw an audience. The more unique your act is the better chance you will have at standing out from other buskers and making more money. For example, if you live in a city that has lots of guitarists singing covers of popular songs, maybe think about something else like being an Elvis impersonator or juggling chainsaws (safely!).
3. Have A Hat/Bucket For Collecting Money
Most people carry small change so it is important to make sure you have an easy way for people to donate. A hat or bucket is the most common way for buskers to collect money because it makes it easy for people to donate without
Busking is an art form that’s often been considered the last refuge of the starving artist. While this statement has a certain amount of truth behind it, in the modern age, many buskers are making upwards of six figures a year.
This blog is going to be all about how you can get started in this exciting field. In order to do so, I’m going to first write about what busking is, where to find good places to busk and then go into some ideas for what you might do.
What Is Busking?
Busking is the art of performing on the street for tips from strangers. It’s a very old form of street performance, but recently it’s become much more popular as people have realized there’s money to be made doing it.
Where To Busk?
The best place to busk is somewhere with a lot of foot traffic. However, not all foot traffic will work equally well for you as a busker. For example, if you’re in New York City and you’re trying to raise money for charity while playing music and handing out fliers simultaneously, Times Square might not be your best bet. There are too many other distractions there; people who are walking by won’t want to stop and listen or
There are many different ways to make a living as a performer. Busking is one of the oldest and best known ways. However, it is also widely misunderstood.
One of the first questions we are asked when people meet us at events or hear that we perform on the street is: “Do you make good money doing that?”. The answer is yes, we do! We make more than minimum wage. We have met other buskers who make much more than minimum wage. But it is not easy money and there are a lot of things that go into making money on the street:
1. Location – you want to be in a high traffic area with lots of pedestrian traffic and visibility from the street. This may not be your favorite part of town, but if you want to make money you need customers!
2. Permit – Check with your local government about permits for busking in public places in your town or city. Some areas have special places where buskers can work without a permit, and others might just require some paperwork to get started legally.
3. Show – You should have an entertaining show that will attract and hold an audience long enough for them to drop coins in your hat!
4. Hat – A hat or other receptacle for
Sleeping in the streets is not a good thing, if you want to become a busker. Have a good rest before you go out to perform. Take some time to focus on your performance, and get ready.
You should never start with the beggars. When you first start out, it’s hard to find an audience that will appreciate your performance. You should always try to be friendly and make people laugh, even if they don’t like the act itself.
If there is any place where you can find other buskers, or maybe just someone who has performed before, always ask them for tips and tricks they have used in the past.
Busking is a very small community around the world, so it’s easy to pick up tips from people all over the world.
The first time I ever heard the term “busking” was told to me by a man named Mike who juggled fire and breathed fire for tips.
I had seen him performing on the street at night and thought he was cool. I had been thinking about doing something similar, so when I met him at a coffee shop, I asked him what he did for a living.
“I busk,” he replied.
I thought he said “bust.” Maybe he had just been arrested? But he explained to me that busking is another word for street performing. And that’s how my journey into the world of street performing began. If you’re considering becoming a street performer, here are some tips to get you started: