(KEY WEST) Just when you think they've figured it all out, Key West's city hall has created still more controversy in their busking laws. Being in the news over the past several years, it may be a matter of the successful Mallory Square Sunset Celebration turf just not being big enough for the city's satisfaction.
The city along with the Cultural Preservation Society(?) now wants to charge individual buskers $20 a night for accepting tips. Federal courts repeatedly rule that permit fees for First Amendment activity are unconstitutional. Yet we see constant challenges to the right of free speech. City halls do not seem to understand that busking and street performing are immune to their taxing. Confusion appears to come when the performer is observed accepting tips. It seems any exchange of money gets some excited...

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(from the You've got-to-be-kidding-me Department)
One of the themes of 2009 was that collection societies around the world went nuts trying to charge for anything they possibly could while also trying to increase the rates they could charge. Even banks went wild with their hidden charges.

Remember how one collection society wanted to charge a woman because she put on music in public for her horses? Or how about the woman who worked in a grocery store who was told to stop singing while stocking the shelves or the store would have to pay a performance fee? And, of course, we had ASCAP trying to claim that ringtones were public performances, and mobile operators needed to pay up -- beyond the license fee that was already paid on the recording.

SOCAN, the Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada, has been no exception pushing for drastically increased rates...

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(CAMDEN TOWN) Holy guacamole! Camden has banned amplified street music and now requires unplugged performers to buy licenses.With the help of the Great Golden Kazoo in the sky, buskers have formed a church to sidestep the new busking laws. The Church of the Holy Kazoo has just been formed in the nick of time by buskers exercising the human right to "preach" in public.

It all started when Buskers staged a "street jam" in the heart of Camden to protest against the controversial new rules to license busking in the borough. Street performer Jonny Walker came up with the idea after Camden council's new laws required buskers to pay for licenses. He realized that street preaching is protected under freedom of expression laws so he set up the Church of the Holy Kazoo. It means Jonny...

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(LONDON) A lot of cities have their individual busking requirements to satisfy city hall. However, it seems London's busking code is more complete than others and could be used as a benchmark for general busking.City Hall said the rules, which cover where to busk, avoids complaints, money collection, and resolving problems. It's aim is to make busking and street performance easier for everyone.

"Busking adds to the capital’s joie de vivre but in spite of its popularity buskers have sometimes encountered problems when plying their trade. Some have even been put off.

Working with our partners, we are putting a scythe through the acres of unnecessary bureaucracy to make it easier to entertain on our city’s streets.

We want to make London the busking capital of the world.”

Click the link ...

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(SAN ANTONIO) The city of San Antonio, Texas has opened the streets to buskers and street performers. Also under re-consideration is nearby Market Square and La Villita."The main purpose is to facilitate the development of neighborhoods, cultural centers, and businesses in the downtown area to create a thriving Central Business District that fosters a warm and inviting atmosphere for residents, employees, and visitors."

The Downtown Street Performer Policy was passed last year but it took a long time for many buskers to hear about it.

Public parks are among the most encouraged places for musicians – and performers of any kind, for that matter – to share their art. Many parks across America are off-limits when it comes to performing.

Read what happens as a busker gently tries to inf...

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