(SHANGHAI) For the first time in modern Chinese history, buskers and street-performers may be able to perform their art without being stopped. "We'll be the first city in China to open arms to street-side performers," said Luo Huaizhen, a playwright who for the last eight years has urged the Shanghai People's Congress to allow street performers.

Shanghai residents will be able to see artists and performers doing creative shows in public spaces for the first time since the World Expo in 2010 when it was temporarily allowed. China has forbidden buskers because crowds gather possibly leading to discussions concerning the government.

Busker Central noticed a few years ago when the Chinese government started draining the street-performer website with useless connections. It has since had to block China...

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(WWW) Every once in a while, the topic of how many buskers there actually are comes up. A few years ago, there was some discussion about the chaps who filmed their performce in Antarctica. It mentioned that all three almost froze as part of a world-wide performance. This only goes to show that buskers are on every continent.How many buskers are there in the whole wide world? Nobody really knows. We can only make an educated estimate based on limited data. An article at AskWonder.com tackles the issue although with certain assumptions. Do the math.

At sometime in the early 1990's, there were approximately ten thousand buskers in Europe alone. This would account for the majority of the planet. The rest of the continents would then total the answer.

Check the link below for more data on the global number...

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Buskers, especially muses, will benefit from the world's first drum machine in a real wearable t-shirt.Now you can actually wear your instrument thumping out sweet digital rhythms as you perform your new routines. With an amazing 7 voices, drummers can create loops with unlimited tracks through 9 different drum kits for up to 3 minutes in length. The drum machine shirt is, of course, machine washable.

Thanks to ThinkGeek - Stuff for Smart Masses, also available for muses are 2 other interactive t-shirts including the Electronic Rock Guitar shirt with programmable guitar. Then there's even the the Electronic Music Synthesizer shirt with which you can program synths to untold of levels.

Musicians wanting a cutting edge performance can now band together and pitch their show by simply wearing their guitars,...

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(WWW) We all start out playing songs we like (covers) from other established artists. It's when we reach a certain plateau that we realize that in order to go further, we're going to have to write songs that the public enjoys. When busking, however, familiarity is king when your cover is recognized as tip-worthy. So, how do we handle our creativity yearning to be heard? Busking can be a very useful tool when first starting out writing songs. It is here that you can get instant feedback if the public is relating to your new song. If people are enjoying themselves, dancing or even singing along, you've really got something worthy of developing.

Try writing a song with a beat or speed up a slow song you've already written. People are out to have a good time and, generally speaking, really don't...

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Well, it rained here in Kansas City. Couldn't go out and do any busking Doh! I'm working on a new look for spring. . .no table.
This will eliminate my 3 shell game, my favorite effect and my bensen bowl routine. I need to re-think everything. I'm thinking rope through body, a giant 3 card monte, maybe "Sharpshooter" with some comedy gags and fun.
I had my website re-done. I think it will be more user friendly and offer more feedback. check it out:
http://blackbeltmagician.com
Any suggestions are welcome. I'm hoping to book some holiday new years shows.
Sold one of my busking books to a chap in Ireland. I'm curious to get his feedback.
That's about it from Kansas City,
Prof. Gizmo