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Playing The Street

© Cindy Lee Haddock

PLAYING THE STREET

It's a sad fact that in many places, you have to pay to get heard. Many venues will charge you a fee to rent it out that you must recoup with ticket sales. Many others are notorious for letting you hand out flyers and tickets in order to get people to come to your gig, then only let you have whatever fees come in with your discounted tickets. Worse yet, others will just plain lie to you about just how many tickets came in, but many artists just put up with it so they can play and build up their audiences anyway. This is why a lot of musicians play out in the streets, anymore. If you are brave enough to try it, this could be a great way for you to get started. Here are a few things you might think about if you decide to give busking, as some call it, a whirl.

DO IT LEGAL

If you do decide to take your gig to the streets, check with your local authorities as to what the laws are in your area. In many places, it is perfectly okay to throw down your guitar case on the side of the sidewalk, but you cross the line when you are blocking the sidewalk, selling tapes/CDs or are aggressive about asking people for tips. Find out exactly what the local ordinances are, and do your best to follow them. In the place I work, we get a lot of street singers, but if they are in our courtyard with battery operated amps, and playing them loud, they have to get a special permit from the city, or else they can be fined, since the place is designated as acoustic music only, or music that is no louder than an acoustic instrument. If you play your acoustic instruments too loud, though, they could still give you a ticket for breaking the noise ordinances, especially if you do so after 10pm. In some places, they will even let you play electric, but you need to get permission from the area businesses, first. In some areas, you can even play in the subways and parks-another reason to check with your local city hall and ask what the different possibilities can be. Get a sales permit if you want to offer your CDs or tapes for sale, too, and make sure to pay those taxes-it makes you look more legit, especially if you are able to rack up some decent unit sales. Sometimes you might make more off your recordings sales than you would in tips, so don't overlook this source of income.