Perth-based busker Clithsby Spencer has lifted the veil on the mysterious world of busking, revealing today that buskers don't technically charge money for their public performances, and are instead forced to continue operating on the kindness of strangers alone.
"It's kind of variable, actually," Spencer told SPA Confidential over a flat white and half a 7-Eleven donut. "Some days I'll make off with a couple hundred bucks, but most of the time I can barely afford the bus ride home."
"People are generally pretty good about floating me their spare change, though," he continued, as a man walked past and, almost on cue, dropped something in Spencer's open guitar case. An incredulous look came across his face.
"Hey! Hey! It's not a bin!"
Watching Spencer treat his captive audience of random passers-by to heartfelt renditions of beloved original classics such as Has Anyone Seen My Cat and Handjobs, Forty-Five Cents is enough to soften even the hardest of hearts, with his emotive harmonica playing and unobtrusively earnest begging doing much to give his performance the emotional weight one would expect for the entry price.
"I also do parties," Spencer said as he finished his coffee. "I actually do have a set rate for those, but.
"It's pretty reasonable, actually, if you wanted to talk about that instead."
