There is a long list of famous performers who started out as buskers (see below) – maybe this is reason enough to support the new street performers we see on our streets. There is a chance you might be walking past the next Leonard Cohen on your way to work. He just needs a bit more practice, a bit more street sense before hitting the stage, a lucky break…
One such group that made the transition from streets to success is Wicked Aura – a samba drum group who started in front ofshopping malls in Singapore and ended up opening for Black Eyed Peas and making the top twenty on the BBCs ‘Ones to Watch’ in 2007 with their MTV music video:
We spent an evening in the Wicked Aura studio with four of the thirteen-strong group. We heard the whole story as Wicked Aura progressed from street to gigs to music fesitvals to albums and MTV, and were treated to a quick acoustic drum bashing:
Wicked Aura from The Busking Project on Vimeo.
Budi is their charismatic leader and now also teaches drumming and music at a local college. He admits that the boys have slowed down as they’ve gotten older, but they still love to jam together when they get the chance. To finish the evening we cruised the quiet streets of Singapore in the Wicked Mobile (think A-team without all the jumping in and out with guns) listening to CDs and pretending to be groupies.
You can see more of Budi and Wicked Aura on their website.
