(SEATTLE) Believe it or not, buskers can end up in the strangest of good fortune. It's happened before and it will happen again. All it takes are some good busking skills and a little luck.Enter Whitney Monge - a busker in Seattle's famed Pike Place market. She soon found herself making more money busking than working at the big corporate coffee shop down the street.

Whitney spent over eight years at the market and, although having moved on, still considers it "100% home". She also had to weather the pandemic experience.

What's Whitney doing these days? Nothing much - just singing and playing guitar with the Seattle symphony as part of their Essential Series.

Check out the interview and video at KNKX public radio station's website through the link below.

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(BANGKOK) The International Bangkok Street Show is for professional buskers only. Featuring over 52 acts from Thai and around the world, it's one of the largest buskerfests around. Check out the scene through the link below.Bangkok International Street Show

We've all found ourselves at one point or another staring in fascination at a busking mime or a talented street musician.In recent years, busking, the term for performing in public places usually for money from the crowd, has grown into an organized art form complete with professional networks, associations and showcase festivals around the world.

Here in the United States, cities such as Miami, San Francisco, New York and New Orleans have become known for their thriving busking scenes.

Take Maria for instance. A longtime busker in the French Quarter of New Orleans, Maria acts as a human statue, completely still, covered in metallic gold paint and dressed in a matching antique wedding gown. While one may think Maria, often referred to as the Jilted Bride, just stands there doing nothing, her motionless presence...

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(SEATTLE) It takes one glance any day of the week to see lots of buskers performing at Seattle, Washington's Pike Place Market. The popular and colorful water-front marketplace is alive and well.Busker Central reporters recently visited the scene and observed that street-performers were literally on every block. Pianos, guitars, saxophones, and clarinets were all making music leaving the possibility wide open for larger circle shows. Although the pitches are now permitted, some performers had been busking the market for over 10 years.

A huge tourist mecca, Pike Place Market is also home to the first Starbucks coffee shop. The line to enjoy a cup of java was well outside the door and down the block. Beside the line, a guitarist was busy performing classic rock songs and really seemed to be enjoying himself. Down...

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(ARIZONA) You wouldn't think Arizona would have come this far - but Downtown Phoenix, Inc. thinks the time is right. Lo and behold, there's music and performing where there once was none. It seems the desert southwest has caught the busker bug.

From flea markets to sporting events to outdoor malls, there are buskers plying their trade and free to now express themselves artistically. The times - they are a changin'.

And why not? Making a more vibrant community can only enhance revenue for the cities thru increased sales in shops and restaurants.

The atmosphere is rhythmically changing into something we can all appreciate when we try. Add a dash of interviews and you've got a nice recipe for explaining Busker Nation.

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