been thinking about giving it a go for a couple of hours a week, money is tight to say the least.

am an average guitar/singer but have some questions

1) would “contributions” from the general public be classed as income and therefore affect carers allowance, and or income support? (its a long story but i look after the missus all day, with support from close family…)
2) where to go? obviously public places but i dont want to intrude on someone elses pitch, or get knicked?
3) my repertoire is wide but a bit miserable, bob dylan, radiohead, nick drake, paolo nuttini (loving the new album!) ray lamontagne etc etc, is it best to pick a set and repeat? and any suggestions?
4)how many songs should a set have, 15, 20ish?

anyone do it?

any thoughts?

4)how many songs should a set have, 15, 20ish?

Most punters arent expecting a long gig 🙂

just make sure you’re good.

if you can play and people in the room forget that is it you playing bescause it is near faultless then i’d say you were good to busk.

have two mates who have done this. one used to sit down and start playing. as people came up to watch he’d start singing about the people around him, picking up on odd choices of clothing, what people had bought. light hearted but also very funny. he used to do well in a few hours on a busy south coast seafront in summer.

Used to do a spot of busking in Aberdeen / Edinburgh. I know about five songs from start to finish (to sing at least) and just fleshed them out a bit. Also did a lot of picky / instrumental stuff to give my voice (and everyone elses’ ears) a rest.

I’d highly recommend learning some cheesy upbeat stuff too – you’re going to be appealing to the lowest common denominator of musical tastes – how about, “I’m in Love with a Fairy Tale”? 😀

Instant reaction is to say don’t worry about benefits, but these days, they are probably on the look out for that kind of thing, and it is a very public performance….. They can’t prove how much you’ve earned though…..