If I may ... and without taking up too much room. Here is the Reader's Digest version of my experiences as a busker. If it's not to your liking, just skip over it.

Reggie: to answer your question. A busker is a wee folk singer in the same way that a Hummer is a big jeep.


If you get the chance to hear my song "The Troubadour" it's about the busking scene, as it was in the 1990's. The tune was taken from a Matt McGinn song which incorporated lines from The Rubyats of Omar Khayyam and was an old tune.
I worked as a Paramedic for many years and transferred to Victoria BC in 1995. There was a lively busking scene there and in 1996 I decided to try it out as a way of sharpening my skills. There is nothing more difficult than an indifferent audience (except for Scots and Golfers) and I was sure this would be a real test.
I bought a Busker's License for $10 and set up down on the Causeway.
My first sets were making me about $30 per hour and I was getting quite discouraged. My son who was about 12 or 13 at the time, went for a walk during one of my sets and when he came back, enlightened me on the art of busking. "Dad; You've got to get cheeky. That's what the good ones are doing." And so began the real Busker's Apprenticeship.
The very next set, I began speaking to people (between lines) as they passed me by. Never asked for money. Always smiling and never hurtful. Audience participation is the key to many forms of entertainment and the same goes for busking. One thing worth remembering too is that men are pigs so if you can involve young ladies in your show, men will watch and so will their families.
The Unicorn is an excellent song for this reason. If I can get 3 or 4 young women to do the actions then within the time it takes to sing the song, the audience will increase dramatically and the show begins. A crowd draws a crowd and when I felt that the crowd was large enough, I would play for twenty minutes more. Before the last song I would remind them all that I am a busker and would accept donations but always assured them that if they had already given to a busker that day or just wanted to enjoy a free show then that's fine by me. If I had product then that would also be the time (and the only time) to mention it.
My evening shows in Victoria drew more people than I could handle and usually netted $200 without product.
Later, in Cheticamp, Cape Breton I discovered a small band-shell on the boardwalk. I approached the Boardwalk Committee and was given permission to use the band-shell each Wednesday evening, free of charge. I coined the Phrase "Fair Weather Concerts" and they advertised the show with sandwich boards and gave me access to electricity and chairs. I dropped in to the local radio station and they were only too happy to advertise the show.
Each Wednesday evening I would take one of my sons, set everything up including my own P.A. and play two 45 minute sets, selling CDs at the intermission and at the end of the show. For the next three summers I was invited back.
I did the same in Chemainus a few years back and that town is now promoting a "Fair Weather Concert" series each summer which is proving to be an excellent venue for the young ones.
I would recommend trying the Band-Shell Concert to any of you who are interested in creating your own venue with no overheads. Busking though?... I'd be very careful about that.