This is The story of a Busker

What is life of a busker like? I ask myself this question every time I see one while walking through the tube stations. Is this their only source of income, is it enough, how does this work? So many questions, there was only one way to answer them, So Courtney, Heather and I set out on a Journey to find a busker.
The first question to be answered is what is a busker; it is musician in British lingo. Most often they are found in the tube stations, because that is where all the people are, and in many of these stations there are great acoustics. So this is the story of a busker named Bobhi FM.
There is no telling how many buskers there are in London, but I they usually go to the same station frequently. I’ve seen Bobhi FM before in the Westminster tube stations so I was excited to get to talk to him. Bobhi does Reggae music, so most of the songs you will hear him singing when you pass him are Bob Marley cover songs. Bobhi was very gracious and let us have some of his time, and then played a song for us at the end.
One of the biggest things to be learned from Bobhi if you are seeking a career as a busker, is that you have to play cover songs. In Bobhi’s words “people want to hear stuff they know not my music.” Bobhi has 5 albums; playing cover songs doesn’t help him to sell his own music, which has cost him a fortune to create. Each album he makes costs him about 5,000 pounds to make.
Bobhi has been playing music for 32 years and he can play an array of instruments, from the acoustic guitar, bass guitar, keyboard, and several percussion instruments like the bongos. Bobhi has been playing music pretty much all of his life, he grew up playing it in school, and really enjoyed it.
Bobhi has had had several experiences all over the world and living in other places like Paris, France; Santa Monica, California; Jamaica, and Africa, but he calls London home. He used to work a 9 to 5 job as an administrative assistant, but that wasn’t quite paying the bills. So he started to play music in the tube stations, eventually the 9 to 5 job wasn’t fulfilling. He because relying solely on his music to provide his income, this is from being a busker and selling the 5 albums he has.
There is more to Bobhi than just music, he likes to travel, and read. He is actually in the process of writing a book that will tell about the life of a musician. Bobhi was a very interesting person and I hope to be able to talk to more buskers and learn more about their lives. Being able to talk to Bobhi and see him living out his life doing what he loves and surviving was great. Bobhi was incredibly nice and before we left him he gave us one of his albums, so now I can jam to the sweet tunes of Bobhi FM any time I want not just in the tube.
Bobhi will not remember meeting 3 girls on one random afternoon, but we will not soon forget the experience. Being able to look into the life of a real Londoner, to be able to understand what life was like for him just a little bit was a blessing to us. So next time you are walking through the tube station don’t just walk on past the person offering you the gift of their music, telling them they are great, you appreciate them, and support the arts. It is truly great that they are doing what they love and blessing us with their talents.