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Donate

By donating to the busking project you will be helping a creative community come together , change perceptionsand hopefully some day create a platform to support street performers around the world.

It’s really easy to show your support, simply click the donate button and follow the instructions on our paypal site if you want to find out why we need the money and what it goes towards then please read on.

We would also like to Thank You for considering to donate to our community.

Donate

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Why Donate

Busking is the last vestige of non-commercial art, untainted by ads, sponsorship or the cult of celebrity. We’re proponents of this ethos. As such, we can’t make our revenue through advertisements or questionable sponsorship deals. We will not brand your experience.

So, we have to rely on other sources of funding. But merchandising can only go so far for a small venture like ours. Until we get major funding from a grant-making organisation, or some serious outside investment, we’re relying on the kind donations of people like yourself.

Why is busking important?

Of the many reasons, here are our favourites: -
- Busking is one of the few art forms not controlled or managed by corporates or agents
- It is immensely varied and truly popular, as in ‘people to people’.
- It provides entertainment, colour, life and vitality outside of the drab and uninspiring world of TV
- It brings a sense of freedom, pleasure, amusement and community to passersby, and adds spontaneity to the rat race
- It’s democratic, funded voluntarily by an appreciative audience.
- It enables artists to find out where their strengths and weaknesses lie.
- It alleviates poverty, and helps people pick themselves up from broken or dysfunctional situations.
- It gives people inspirations and aspirations
- It’s good for business and tourism
- It has started countless careers (click here to see all the ex-busking celebrities)
- AND IT IS ACCESSIBLE TO EVERYONE

how does it work?

FOR BUSKERS.

Buskers can create their own profiles, upload media, network and put themselves on an interactive map of the world. They’ll also have access to a wealth of resources, like civil rights organisations who are there to help out, model busking guidelines to show overzealous BIDs, and testimonials from lawmakers, judges, celebrities, academics, fans, civil rights organisations, merchants and anyone else with something important to say about busking.

FOR PASSERSBY.

Our audience can explore the weird and wonderful world of street performance. They can find their local buskers, whether in their own city or while on holiday. The site is a media-rich playground intended not just to entertain, but to put people in contact with each other, and inspire more people to go out onto the street to take in a show.

What are the funds for?

The one thing we couldn’t skimp on is site development and design. As you can see, it’s money well spent. But we’re continuing to improve the site, making improvements the moment we have enough in the bank to pay the developers. We’re also paying bills (like hosting fees).

Anything else?

 
Yes! To make this project sustainable in the future, we’re also designing and creating T-shirts, CDs, a coffee table book, a guidebook and a phone app, all of which require initial funds to create.

How have you been funded so far?

In 2010, Nick’s grandmother passed away, leaving him some money. It’s a contentious issue, but he felt that as he hadn’t earned it, he shouldn’t keep it. With it, plus a loan, two Kickstarter campaigns and two fundraising events, the team has raised enough money to complete the initial phase of The Busking Project.

Now, three years later, that money has long since run out. Nobody is paying us to create this work — no production company, no big sponsors, no generous foundations. Not yet. It has been an amazing experience, and we are grateful for the opportunity to meet and film such wonderful people. But it has also been very hard to put together, and continues to be an entertaining struggle.

What do I get in return?

You can view this website for free for as long as you like. However, here are some reasons why you might like to donate: you’ll get the warm feeling of knowing you’ve helped an historic project reach its goals; we will put your name in the credits of our film and book, as well as on our thank you page; you’ll convince our friends and families that we haven’t been wasting our time for over three years; your money keeps this site ad-free; we’ve worked really really hard for this with no pay; and because tipping makes the world go round.
 
Your donation — however large — will make a difference! Already donations from people like you have raised £8,000 and counting. We really couldn’t do it without you!