Traveling through the US of A whilst playing guitar - advise please

[Woolbury]

Sounds like a cool adventure. A couple things jump out. Starting in Sept? Missing the summer here in most of USA? Sept & Oct are nice in many locations, but then you'd have to head south to be comfortable hanging outdoors. I don't know the carbon guitar offerings, but Id be ok with a relatively inexpensive guitar that you wouldn't freak out about if something happened. Hostels are certainly around here in Colo, but not aware of them in Denver, which has a robust busking scene btw. One suggestion would be to target college towns, most will have hostels and friendly young folks to meet up with. Good luck!

[Tahitijack]

My best advice is to seep your street gear to a minimum and always stay alert as there are some ugly Americans that will help themselves to your tips and personal gear if given a chance. This is especially true in downtown areas of major cities. BTW some street performers think they actually own their space and look down on newly arrived completion. We have a serious homeless problem that is getting worse by the day. You are def welcome to come here and entertain us, just look out for your self and personal safety while you do. Good luck and I hope your visit goes smoothly and you return home with great stories and good memories.

[opencee]

My son has travelled most of Europe and Russia as a CouchSurfer. He even hosts CouchSurfers here in the U.S.. Couchsurfing guests do not pay to stay in private homes.


Here is a link to a Wikipedia article about Couchsurfing International:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CouchSurfing


Here is a link to the official website:

https://www.couchsurfing.com


You can join and be a host or a guest. Every host and guest sets certain criteria to match up with. All hosts and guests are rated by each other, so there is some history and accountability.

It is somewhat traditional, though not mandatory, for a guest to bring a gift, usually from their home. It can be anything simple and transportable. It may be postcards, stickers, or candy. Sometimes guests will purchase the evening meal, or help in the preparation, etc..

Some hosts prefer at least a two night stay. That way they get to know the guest and learn about their country and their travels. Sometimes a one night stay just seems like a free room to the host. Hosts tend to want to share their environment, and hope to have others share with them when THEY travel. My son has hosted from one to three days for international and some domestic travelers.

There, now you know as much as I do about Couchsurfing. Maybe somebody else can add to this.

We've never done it, but my wife and I have considered being hosts. Someday, we'd like to be guests. Seems like a really cool way to learn and travel.

Check out Asheville, North Carolina for busking. It's really fun to walk the streets there in the summer and hear all the musicians. I'd visit there more often if it wasn't an eleven hour drive from my home.


opencee

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[DesertTwang]

Originally Posted by Silurian

If you're busking, earning money, doesn't that count as working? Could this be a visa issue?

Yes, it absolutely is a visa issue. In fact, any activity for which an American citizen would be paid is considered illegal work for a foreigner without the necessary visa and documentation, even if(!) the foreign individual does it for free. Busking, for sure, and volunteering, as well as freelancing are considered illegal activities for anyone on a tourist visa. Plus, anyone entering the US under the visa waiver act (which is the category all tourists fall under) cannot stay longer than 90 days. The only way to do what the OP is intending -- busking for up to a year -- is by obtaining a work or business visa. The reason I know this is because I'm an immigrant from Germany who, over the 14 years he's lived in the US, has experienced many of the twisted passages and dead ends that is the US immigration system.

Before I had my green card, I had been here on various work visa, all of them tied to a very specific job. Any potentially remunerable activity, let alone actual income, that I would have practiced outside of that job would have constituted illegal work, breach of visa terms and made me subject to deportation.

I strongly, strongly advise against coming to the US as a tourist (on a visa waiver) and playing music, even for free. I know of a case where a foreign musician came to the US and was planning to play songs for free, in exchange for food(!). US Immigration denied entry and put him on the next plane back to Europe.

Apart from the hassle and the cost, violating visa terms can also have painful effects in that it may make future entries to the US more difficult or impossible.

[DesertTwang]

As others have said, all the advice regarding type of guitar, where to stay, etc., is well-meant and useful, but moot, unless the OP is aware of the immigration issue and either is planning on obtaining a work visa or reconsidering his plan. Especially now under Trump, US immigration authorities have become a lot less forgiving than they used to be.

OP, if you like, shoot me a PM. Having gone through the US immigration system myself, I may be able to offer a bit of advice here and there.

[bufflehead]

Having attended graduate school in the UK, it seems to me that Europe provides a more robust busking culture than the USA. In some US cities, busking may be viewed as a method of panhandling (begging for money.) Others, like San Francisco, have a culture that embraces street performance, but require performers to obtain a license. ( https://sfport.com/street-performer-program ) This could be complicated by the lack of a work visa in some cities. Regardless, please don't expect the sort of reception in most US cities to match what you experienced in The Hague.

Woolbury's suggestion that you consider college towns is worth investigating. You would probably find a receptive audience on the campus where I teach, as long as you don't amplify your music. The moment you turn on an amp, especially near classroom buildings or research spaces, someone will probably call campus security.

Public transportation in much the USA comes as a shock to many of our European visitors. The further you get away from New York City and the mid-Atlantic coastal corridor, the more it sucks.

[Shortfinger]

You cannot do it. The US ain't the low countries. Our cities are not charming, and busking's not going to be as free and easy as your scene there.

You might be able to slip through the legal cracks in a university town, but those with a good vibe for street busking are few and far between. Consider Austin TX, Boulder CO, Berkeley CA, and maybe Athens GA. There are others, but our winter would make playing outdoors impossible.

Nashville is our most vibrant place for street sounds, and a few parts of L.A., but the competition for places is fierce.

[Wade Hampton]

Bickb, as you can see, spending a year busking your way across the USA is going to be more complex and possibly more difficult than you expected. Legal and immigration issues aside, something that many European visitors can be surprised by is by how harsh and wildly varied as our climate in North America can be. Unless you luck into some balmy, mild autumn weather (what we call “Indian summer,”) after October it’s going to be too chilly and cold to play outdoors in most of the Northern and Midwestern states.

What I would suggest you do is bring a guitar, stay for the legally permissible ninety days, and check things out as you arrive in each city that’s been recommended to you. You can almost certainly get away with some busking here and there, but don’t rely on that.

The smartest thing you can do, in my opinion, is to cultivate relationships with American musicians online before you get here. Some might be able and willing to house you for a few days, others not, but try to get a sense of where these online acquaintances live, and maybe then plan your trip around those contacts that you’ve made.

My natural inclination is to be hospitable to Dutch people, because my mother’s French Huguenot family was given safety and shelter in Amsterdam after they managed to escape from murder and defilement at the hands of their fellow countrymen back in France. But I don’t really have a good setup for hosting houseguests. I’d happily feed you and play music with you, though.

Anyway, whatever you end up doing, make sure you have the money to get to the places you want to visit, and when you come through US Customs & Immigration, tell them that you’re bringing your guitar into the country strictly for recreational purposes so you can play music in the homes of the American amateur musicians that you’ve befriended online. You have plenty of money for your trip (and be sure to tell and show them that,) and you have no intention whatsoever of accepting a dime for any music performance anywhere in the USA because you’re well aware that that would violate your visa.

If some opportunities arise where you can perform “under the radar,” so to speak, use your best judgment. Probably the safest way for you to busk, given the status of your visa, is to buddy up with an American musician who can talk to any police officers who might happen along.

Hope this helps. Good luck with this, and keep us posted.


Wade Hampton Miller

[ManyMartinMan]

Originally Posted by HodgdonExtreme

The United States doesn't have hostels. You should consider AirBnB for a place to stay.

Yes we do.

[frankmcr]

As far as the weather is concerned, I have to dissent with everybody who has posted so far. September is a great month throughout most of the USA. Winter - in the true sense of the word, that is, "the time when you don't want to be outdoors any longer than you absolutely have to be" - doesn't start in Chicago until December (and has not ended yet, as of May 21 2018, but that's a bit anomalous).

There are Youth Hostels in the USA: https://www.hiusa.org/ But we mostly don't have independent hostels (like the one in Hostel (2005), for example, which if that movie is to be relied upon is a good thing).

Bed & breakfast places are not usually much less expensive than boutique hotels here, so not a big money-saver.

Always comply with police requests in a friendly, non-confrontational manner.

[jaybones]

Additionally, different cities have different rules on busking. Some have a strict no amplification rule, others have that some rule but more lax enforcement.

There's really no way to know what each place will have until you are there.

And also, you're going to be competing with locals who have earned the good spots. Many of these locals earn their living busking and aren't so willing to share.

The public transportation system in the US is terrible compared to Europe. Some cities have decent rail and bus systems, and there are a few intercity lines (very few, and in more densely populated areas where people commute).

[bickb]

Woop! This went fast, haha.

The reason I want to go to the US is because you have sunshine in the winter & apparently busking is a first amendment(sp?) right. Can anyone elaborate on this? What it exactly means.

I've looked up various posts regardin busking in the US.

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/megha..._12522490.html

http://www.traveldroppings.com/artic...und-travel.php

https://www.reddit.com/r/Guitar/comm...lay_guitar_on/

Especially the reddit post is nice, where people in the comment point out great cities to busk, So I assume its great.

And it's basically trial and error, some places they allow you to stand, other's don't. It's the same everywhere, me thinks :P

So the sum a couple of things up:
-a workers visa is required(but will the cops really check my passport if they see me busking? I can hardly believe that :o It's not like I'm dealin drugs)
- the opinions on public transport differs quite a lot, so I have to look into it more
- starting in september means that it's better to start in the south
- and bring cheap stuff
- couchsurfing seems awesome! Really cool way to meet people, never thought of that.
- be nice to cops! :P

I've also read various post from people just to bring a small tent, because there are plenty of free campsites - I might do this But I have sufficient funds to get by, so not sure I will need it.

And for me the busking is a thing on the side. I only busk an hour/hour and a half a day or so. I play through my entire repertoire, repeat the fancy stuff and then leave I practised my repertoire at home and I thought why not do it infront of other people? That's how it all started

Plus I play classical guitar/fingerstyle, so it's not loud at all. And, well, that's what I hear, I can play, so that's tends to work in your favour as well. (Same goes for the states I think?)

I have a small amp, 5-7 watts on batteries, and it's not allowed in the Netherlands, but for the past 2 months the cops in the Hague, and there are a lot of em in the city centre, just nod and smile at me. I've gotten one complaint from 'law and order(lower ranking than cops)' that when other buskers see me with an amp, that the rest will follow, so I had to stop. But the amp is so small, that I can put a curtain around my 'crutch'(the correct word for a stool without handles?) put the amp underneath and just lower the volume. I played acoustically once, I could barely hear myself playing so I definately need an amp, even at a low volume, but I assume people will understand.

The workersvisa is a thingy. It will take a while before I can get it. I hoped I could just enter with a waivers visa, that means you can just enter the country and get stamp.

Just saying that the guitar is for recreational purposes at the border is a good way to go by, I guess.

I'm hoping to read some more comments about America and the busking culture!

Thank everyone!

[KarenB]

Perhaps Canada would be a better bet. Lots of great cities. Friendly people.

[bluesfreek]

Originally Posted by Antaren

Perhaps Canada would be a better bet. Lots of great cities. Friendly people.

I am Canadian and was going to suggest that. However nobody is busking outdoors in winter here. I was just busking yesterday since it was a holiday and a nice day. Yes people are nice here. In an hour I made twenty bucks and got a free coffee.

My suggestion would be to come to America and buy a cheap guitar there instead of flying yours over and then have to deal with customs over it.

[rct]

Originally Posted by bickb

...& apparently busking is a first amendment(sp?) right. Can anyone elaborate on this? What it exactly means.

No, you don't have that. Prepare to be viewed, for the most part, most of the time, in most of the big cities on the east coast, as a homeless nuisance, not an artist expressing his creative powers and revealing what he has to give to the world.

Seriously brother, I get that you are young and idealistic and all that stuff, but this is not going to be what you think it is.

I sincerely wish you the best of luck with this.

rct