PG Music Home Forums General Discussion Off-Topic Career in music

I live in the United States. I have played in the Tubes in London and France. I have been to Bucharest.
It is a bit easier if you are younger. It is very easy to get to know musicians in Italy who play in the streets. There are a lot of English guys and girls who play with the Italians. There is money to be made. It is difficult to learn your way around but it can be done.

There are kids and older people who are making enough money to support themselves all over Europe busking.

They know how to play the guitar or piano generally and a few other instruments. They are as much entertainers as musicians.

There are a few people like myself who would love to have a vocalist who knows how to sing.
I am pretty sure I am not the only one. I assume you live in or near Bucharest. Romania is not the best area in Eastern Europe to play on the street.

Until you learn to play some instrument well enough to accompany your voice you will have to team up with someone who plays.

Playing in the street in Europe is actually a good way to become a professional musician in Europe.
People will listen to you and if you are any good it will lead to other jobs.

There are many things you don't need, like a car. It is winter so more clothes are needed. If I were you I would try to get a job where you live this winter and save up some money, buy a cheap playable acoustic guitar, and play it till your fingers bled this winter. There are more tourists in the summer and it is a hell of a lot easier to deal with the weather conditions in the summer.

Try to figure out something that sets you apart from the rest of the musicians. I am from Texas, so I can do that Texas cowboy accent, which serves me well in England, for example. I speak several languages well enough to make small talk. I speak Arabic which gives me an in with the North Africans. Those guys are supporting their kids with the money they make playing, so they have little interest in sharing any with you, but if you speak Arabic, you can sometimes get in.

Look, it is getting more difficult by the year to survive playing music and it is only something you should consider if you are willing to work very hard and smart and be willing to put up with a good bit of crap and disappointments. There are plenty of people out there on the street willing to take advantage of you in many different ways. I have seen drugs and alcohol kill several of my musician friends over the years.

You may struggle from time to time to make enough to survive. That is why the definition of a guitar player who has lost his girlfriend/boyfriend is considered homeless...lol

Have fun and be good, and if you can't be good, be careful...lol

Cheers,

Billy

EDIT: Go listen to Subterranean Homesick Blues, it is pretty close to what real life is...lol In fact, you should learn a few of Bob Dylan's songs if you play on the street.