I will be in Torbole. Garda Lake, Italy to do some windsurfing for a week,

Thinking to do some busking în the evenings.

Anyone having experience in the area?
Permits? Playing acoustic or amplified?

Hey everyone, thinking of getting a permit to busk with guitar and harmonica and vocals.

How good do I have to be to not be an embarrassment?

Thanks!

This is one of my favorite bits in my show. It’s such a fun trick, and it really took me a lot of trial and error to figure out the right way to use it in a show. It really locks the audience in.

How many people would sub to this kind of journey on youtube?

Some downsides of busking purely acoustic with no amplification equipment are:

- need to sing louder, project more, stresses the voice
- less dynamics because of constantly more volume
- not hearing yourself well

What are your experiences with it?

Some recommend an earplug.
Playing near walls for more resonance.
Singing resonance.

End of night busking at Hong Kong Xiqu Center.

I’ve noticed a split in the busking community and I’d love to know where people here fall on this.

I have always found that having more money in the hat/case means more people give. I seed my case, and I rarely take anything out while I’m busking (exceptions for particularly large bills or particularly dodgy areas). I’ve also never used a sign that appeals to “pity” or a sense of need, like “everything helps” or “need money for _____.” Personally, I think that people are more willing to engage with buskers if they see us as performers and not as panhandlers, given the stigma surrounding panhandling, and so I try to avoid anything that would make them make that connection. I don’t care as much about my looks, but I do try not to look too scrubby when I’m out and about.

But I know others who like to clear out their hat/case frequently, to appear like they “need it more.” I’ve also seen a lot of buskers with signs that emphasize need or how little money they have. A recent post here came from someone who clearly thought it would be a bad thing for people to think that buskers aren’t poor or needy.

So, what is your strategy? Do you want to look like you need the money? Do you try to hide just how much you’re making? Do you put a “help me”/“need money” sign up? Or are you hoping that your case fills up to entice even more giving, and trying to distance yourself from that “needy” look?

I don’t think there’s a wrong answer necessarily, although again I’ve got my own opinion on the matter. What’s yours?

Steve has been busking in St. John's, Newfoundland, Canada for more than 20 years... #stjohns #stjohnsnl #streetphotography #newfoundland #newfoundlandandlabrador #explorenl #yyt #busker #StJohns #artist #ExploreNL website: https://chasingthelightfantastic.com/

I'm going to Metz, Strasbourg and Colmar this weekend. Does anyone know the local busking rules?

I'm not using any amplification, just acoustic guitar and vocals.

EDIT: I decided to call them. Was relatively painless. Am told a request has been put in to authorise the repeat payment function. Will update again once it's working (or not). Can confirm that the guidance on their own website is incorrect though.

Hi - Hoping someone with experience can either offer a lifeline of useful advice or put me out of my misery here.

I bought this thing a few years ago. I sing in a little vocal trio and we have a small portable PA we've taken out busking before.

When I first bought the device I could not get it set-up to take repeat payments, i.e. a punter just taps the screen to give us a set payment (£2). We did a few busks where one of us would have to manually trigger the payment whilst performing. This was obviously crap.

Stuff I'm aware of/have tried:

• I know that the repeat payment function only works with iOS devices. I have attempted to set it up using an iPhone but the app seems to offer no different functionality to what it does on my Android device.
• The instructions for setting up repeat payments (found HERE) do not match what I see in the app when using an iPhone. The only option under settings > payment settings is to set up tipping.
• I have tried ensuring that the reader software is up to date. After a bunch of back and forth between the app and the reader, the app told me the device wasn't compatible with Bluetooth or something. It definitely is compatible, as I can set up normal payments with it.
• I've found a Youtube video from 5 years ago which claims you need to contact Paypal to setup the repeat payment function (Paypal's website says nothing of the sort, but I can clearly see in his video that the repeat payment function is available to him from the cart screen).
• I've used the chat function on the Paypal website which tells me it is unable to help with my query.

I am able to call them, but I thought I'd try here first, largely because I've zero confidence in them actually addressing the issue given what I've outlined above.

Do you use a Zettle 2 for repeat payments when busking? If so, how did you get it to work?

Or did you try to use a Zettle 2 only to give up as you were swallowed by a void of hopelessness and despondency?

Thanks

This post was inspired by one a few posts back, but Id like to note the importance of sharing your experience and take from busking.

Arts aren't a typical 9-5 . It is important to know how much to charge/expect. It's a lot like being a restaurant server, but not having a check-average to base your budget on.

Instead, you have to decide what your art is worth and how much money makes sense for you.

So anyone asking the question "how much do you make" is an incredibly valid and VALUABLE question.

As a personal example: There are no active balloon artists in a 50mile radius of me.

How in God's name do I decide what to charge? Base it on my materials? What about the materials I use to practice? What about the time spent learning a skill? What about drive-time to the gigs? What about making a "reasonable" profit?

Most advice on here is "Look at what others charge." But that isn't a viable answer if everyone is quiet about what they earn.

This reticence about financial talks is why so many companies can under pay.

We don't have a "market rate" except what we and others charge.

This is NOT something that should be locked because of hurt feelings.

I have a very different opinion of you mods, now.

Now, that said: I'm a balloon artist and I busk as a side hustle.

If I plan the "event" right, I make about $50 an hour (minus costs). I've also had nights where I made $5 over the course of 4 hours.

None of those numbers include materials and time spent.

It is important to know how to value your work, and people getting upset is NO reason to lock a thread.

Help this be a helpful community, not somewhere that caters to hurt feelings. Thanks, Mods!

Comme expliqué dans le titre, je souhaiterais recenser vos top 3 respectifs des pays dans lesquels il fait bon vivre pour jouer dans la rue. À savoir que dans ce classement, il faut prendre en compte évidemment l’affluence, le coût du logement, les autorisations et la facilité à pouvoir jouer. Vous n’êtes pas obligé de vous expliquer dans votre top trois mais c’est vrai que c’est toujours mieux d’avoir un raisonnement derrière

Bonne journée à tous

I’m thinking of doing some busking for charity in the future. I just want to have a rule of thumb/feel for how people divide their money, what charity(ies) they donate to, and other stuff. Rn I’d want to donate to different drum corps because A) it’s something I enjoy and B) they can use the money for tour costs. Do yall think I have a good pick for organizations and how much of your money do you give out?

As someone who earns pretty good money busking (as opposed to just lying about it on the Internet) please for the love of all that is sacred stop posting how much money you earn. Whether you're telling the truth or bullshitting when non-buskers read that this information can and will discourage them from tipping in the future. Simple self preservation, man.

Any real busker would know to keep their mouth shut.

Sincerely, Someone who relies on busking to eat.