Music, Busking, Freedom of Art/Speech & USA 1st Amendment

Hey everyone! Hope all is well with you, all things considered!

I just thought I’d share some ideas about freedom of speech, especially how it relates to music and some experiences I’ve had with the intersection between playing music, freedom of speech and the 1st Amendment.

Freedom of Speech

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

Of course, USA 1st amendment is somewhat specific to the USA, but I think the ideals of the 1st Amendment can be seen as generally applicable to most people around the world, and a lot places around the world also seek to uphold similar laws/ideas.

I understand that some countries don’t allow freedom to practice certain religions – but this article is more about freedom of speech as it relates to music.

Of course, there are people that will probably take advantage of society’s protection of freedom of speech. But in general, I think musicians, artists and people do seek to respect the 1st Amendment and freedom of speech, etc.

I’m not trying (too much) to make a specific statement about current issues (per se), other than that expression of art and music deserves to be protected by fundamental social/government norms – rather I wanted more to share some of my experiences relating 1st Amendment rights and busking. Of course, you could apply these principles to current situations, but it’s not the main focus of the article.

Busking

I’ve been very grateful to play with many great musicians over the years and to have played in a lot beautiful locations around the world.

Busking rates very highly among many of my great musical experiences. I’ve learned so much about music, people and life from busking. I’ve feel like I paid some of my music dues by busking.

What’s busking?

It’s basically playing in a public place for tips. In most cities, there’s a culture around busking musicians. And most cities have spots around town that musicians generally tend to play, usually near large crowds where they can share their music with the most people (and usually) hopefully make more money and have more exposure.

Here’s some examples of busking, I’m sure you’ve seen stuff like this before – like where the famous songwriter shows up, or a famous musician disguises themselves (or don’t). There’s tons of great (nonfamous) musicians busking, too.

Anyways, busking is great way for people to hear music, to make a place come alive, and for musicians to continue on their musical journey. Of course, there’s tons of issues, too – like musicians playing too loud, causing drama, and spending their money on drugs, etc.

But what many people may not realize is that it’s protected (in the USA) under a ruling from the Supreme Court based on the 1st Amendment.

Learning How to Busk

Even if someone is a great musician, they still need to learn the ropes of how to busk “successfully”. Certain pieces/songs, locations/places, times of the day/week/month/year, sounds systems all tend to work better than other places.

I think it depends on the person, but to really learn to busk decently well probably takes at least 6 months of going a few times a week before you work out most of major kinks and start earning decent money (even if you are already a fairly accomplished musician).

Some people will discover their busking groove pretty quick, but other may take longer to sort out some of the major challenges.

For example, Joshua Bell (an amazing musician and all round human being) played great music. But if he had moved his location slightly and (maybe) experimented with different types of feels/melodies, I think he would have done even better/been more widely well received. But it was basically his first time trying to busk.

It’s sort of like the first time someone plays with monitors or on a bigger stage, they probably still have a lot of learning on how to deal with the details. Their performance may be great, but their on the beginning of a learning curve. Busking is the same way (in terms of learning curve), though details are different.

And, even though busking is allowed in many places, there are a lot of local rules governing if someone can still play there at a given moment. A lot of them have to do with noise levels and amps. But there’s other stuff like not blocking sidewalks and what is public/privately property.

Busking and the 1st Amendment

One of the coolest things about busking is it’s actually considered to be protected under the 1st Amendment.

There’s lots of details, so it’s not so cut and dry, but the main (1st Amendment) principle of freedom of speech/expression does remain.

There has been many reasons to restrict busking behavior such as public safety, noise issues, and curfews. Busking cannot be prohibited in an area where other forms of free speech are not prohibited.

Busk.co | US Busking Laws

• Busking is a 1st Amendment Right (ACLU)
• Detailed Analysis of a specific court cases

What’s Public and What’s Private?

Public and Private Property in the USA have blurred lines in many regards (I’m not a legal expert, this it just an overview that comes to mind).

For example, most sidewalks and public transportation areas are some sort of public/private space. And since music travels through the air, it may originate in a public or private space, but cross over into a private space (like the privately owned building across the street holding a board meeting where they can’t hear the speaker, only the the singer across the street singing Wagon Wheel or something haha).

One of the other main issues with busking on public space is the possibility of obstructing pedestrian movement. This is an important practical issue, and I think most buskers try to be respectful of the space. But it is an issue nonetheless and different people have different perspectives on the specifics of what is the best use of space.

Accepting Tips/Selling Stuff while Busking

Another main issue with busking is that people will leave tips and/or maybe buy an album (under the arguments about freedom of speech). Freedom of Speech doesn’t cover the freedom to earn money. But there’s a lot of gray area. Basically it’s been decided that it’s not central to the fundamental right of an artist/musician to busk – and that it’s allowed.

Common Courtesy and Respect

While the 1st Amendment does protect many forms of unrespectful speech and behavior, I believe street musicians should strive to be as respectful and kind as possible. They should still firm and politely stand up for their rights, as well.

Most of the ordinances and town rules about public/street performances are created because of unpleasant situations. They usually don’t want to damping freedom of artistic expression, they just want to be able to walk around and sleep well at night.

While I definitely believe in the right to busk under the 1st Amendment, I think musicians should always strive to be respectful of themselves and other. And probably more respectful in some instances.

At the same time, ordinances and permits have the potential to be abused as well.

It’s a balancing act and citizens and public officials need to be vigilant to maintain a higher level of freedom of speech and artistic expression. But so do musicians.

Learning from Busking

Some of the great musical stuff I’ve learned/improved from busking off and on for over 10 years:

• How to feel what works at given moment
• How Sound Quality Affect Performance
• The Importance of Tight Arrangements
• The Balance Between Feel and Technique
• How Energy Affects Performance
• The Combination of Common Sense and Artistic Expression

Feeling what works

A large part of success with busking is learning and paying attention to what works. And that can change in a few seconds.

Sure, you can sort of size up how the people are responding to the music, and adjust accordingly. It’s not just repetoire, but subtle cues and vibes too, like dynamics, melodies vs solos, groove, etc.

One of the great things about busking – people generally tip for what they like. So you can usually get fairly immediate feedback if something is working or not – like in 10 seconds to 20 minutes.

Of course, what works at one point in time may not work at another place/time.

There’s tons of factors:

• weather (everyone loves good weather)
• time of day (different moods for morning/lunch/evening)
• time of week (is it Monday or Friday?)
• time of month (pay day?)
• location (are there people, does the location have good Feng Shui?)

• Six 5-10 Minute Groove Practice Ideas!
• Learning Songs: Listen, Sing, Play
• Play what you sing, Sing what you play!
• 12 ways to improve musicality

Sound Quality

People react to the feel of the music and the visual spectacle, but one underlooked factor – the sound quality.

Getting from decent sound quality to great makes a huge impact. But it’s more complicated that it may seem:

• Quality of Gear (it’s obvious, but actually harder to find the best combo of gear for busking sometimes)
• Natural Acoustics
• Background Noise

Here’s some info about what I’ve used. It’s not to say that it would be good for you, or that there may be something better. But it has worked in certain gigging/busking situations pretty well.

• The evolution of my battery-powered amplification systems
• Roland Micro Cube Bass RX Amp Review (Busking, Guitar, Bass, Violin, Battery-Powered)

Tight Arrangements

When busking, you usually have the opportunity to work/practice on arrangements and chops. A big choice is whether to stick to a tighter arrangement versus jam out more.

It usually evolves over time – and this is one of the things that makes busking great. You get feedback on the details of your music making craft, and you get the chance to try out a lot of subtle variations.

I personally tend to like the tight arrangements for the bigger crowds with solos used to amp up energy – but not straying too far from the musical theme – unless the crowd obviously likes more improv or specific grooves related to improv sections.

Balance Between Feel and Show/Technique

Like a concert, it’s important to balance between feel and technique. But in busking sometimes the balance can shift.

Since people are always sitting/standing (like in a concert), flashy grooves and technique can play a bigger part in busking set. It’s not to say that it’s always needed. But finding the balance between the two is an important part of dialing in a set.

Energy in Performance

Most people respond to good energy in music. But in busking the response can be more immediately apparent and tangible.

For example, you’ll see people dancing start dancing (especially kids which is always fun). Or you can chill out a tense situation on the street by playing relaxing music.

In general the public can usually feel intention and focus that you seek to transmit through the music.

At the same time, focusing on the music and not the people also seems to create the better music and overall situations, too. So it’s a bit of a balancing act between focusing on the music and being aware of one’s physical surroundings.

Usually (in my experience), the musician(s) needs to create a higher (and goo vibes) energy situation to create a musical bubble within the public space.

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• 12 ideas for good health (Wellness for everyone including musicians)

Common/Street Sense and Artistic Expression

Busking successfully usually requires a good deal of both common sense and artistic expression.

Without the good art/music, people usually won’t respond well.

Without the common sense – in this case street sense – you can find yourself in all sorts of street/public-space-related drama.

There’s so many different people in different roles usually on a city street. Commuters, tourists, homeless people, police, security, other musicians, other vendors, other public workers, the building staff, etc.

And plenty of different personalities, too.

Each one deserves respect and also proper forms of communication, and generally understood good ways of public social interactions. These specific communications skills and styles of behavior (at least for me) take time to learn and do well.

Combining the good art and music with the common sense and street sense creates a beautiful combo that allows musicians to share beautiful music with the people. And for the musician to hone their musical art and craft.

• Practicing Gratefulness (as a musician)
• Ideas about diffusing tense situations
• Truth Love and Power, and Social Discourse
• Kindness in Learning Music
• Important Skills: Negotiating, Part 1

Pracitce Makes Progress

This started out as an article about 1st Amendment rights of musicians, but really ended up about the beauty of busking and some of its challenges. Hope you enjoyed!

Anyways, hope this finds you well! All the best. Please feel free to comment/contact me with ideas, thoughts, suggestion, comments!

All the best!