Busk in The Subway.

Ahhhhh, New York City. Back again, so soon. Why? To visit beautiful girlfriend (but also to try and make a few connections and scope out the music scene) This is her. (Pretty hot? Don't worry, I know.) But what happens when she is gone all day teaching at her dance studio and you have an entire day in New York by yourself? You take a crash course of New York City subway and test your luck at busking at the most populated spots. But it can get very confusing and sometimes you find yourself lost. Very lost. Just ask Tom Hanks. He was just trying to find Central Park.

What is busking for you music noobs? It's performing (typically unamplified) in a highly populated public area in an effort to earn tips from listeners or watchers. Forget oil rig operating or skydiving. Step aside Deadliest Catch. Billy The Exterminator? Nope. Wrestling alligators is child's play. Dodging pigeon turds while playing music is for the big kids. Cops chase you. Rival buskers are trying to out-play you. Mimes surround you and stare lividly. Sometimes people just throw half eaten hot dogs for no reason. Dogs pee on you. Little kids laugh and point and walk up to you and kick you in the balls. You can be imprisoned for up to fifteen years. Even sent to another country as slave labor. Yes, busking makes even Evel Knievel look like Stephen Hawking.

Actually all of that is completely untrue. Typically cops won't bother you if you are not amplified, other buskers don't care unless you are in a reserved spot (which requires a permit and if you're in New York, an audition held only once a year that only two people get accepted from). Pigeons also very rarely take the time to fly all the way down into the subway, hover above you, and crap on your head (they are too busy eating dirty gum and styrofoam cups on the sidewalk).

You want to do some research to find out high traffic areas. You also need to find a place where people are forced to stop walking, or else hardly anyone will take the time to listen. NY is an extremely fast-paced place and people generally aren't on mid-afternoon strolls around subway stations. If you play right next to the stops, where the people are waiting for their train, they will hear you, but the subways themselves are absurdly loud and you will be drowned out from time to time. You have to project yourself and be unafraid of getting peoples attention. It's great practice for live performers. Some people who got their start busking include: BB King, Bernie Mac, Bob Dylan, Blue Man Group, Bon Jovi, Cirque de Soliel (WHAT!?), Damien Rice, Eric Clapton, Jaoquin Peonix, Kanye West, Norah Jones, Sheryl Crow, STOMP, Simon and Garfunkel, Jason Mraz, Martin Sexton and way too many more to list. The complete list is here.

The average busker typically makes about $15-$20 a day. However if you have some real talent and can really work a crowd, buskers can make an upwards of $300 a day. Not to mention you get a ton of exposure to thousands and thousands of people every day, even if it's only for a few minutes or seconds at a time. I plan on moving to NYC in the not-so-distant future and will be busking a whole lot - I definitely plan on attempting to break the $300.00 mark at some point. If you are interested in trying busking yourself, check out this link! I will also be putting together a pretty hefty group of songs to get some heads turning. So if you have any ideas for an ultimate NYC set list, put them below in the comment box. Happy busking. Stay thirsty my friends.

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