In Irish law, busking is considered vagrancy - you can be arrested for it. It's risky asking people for money in public. So it's not like it's a high-art job. And people who do it as a high-art job make very little money.

I've always felt that if I ever got cynical, I would have to stop making music because I'd just be poisoning the air.

As a busker, one thing that does not work is self-consciousness. A busker needs to be working. A busker needs to shed all ego and get down to work. Play your songs, play them well, earn your money, and don't get in people's way.

I guess in a way I just feel blessed to be able to make music.

Do I create conflicts for myself? Sure I do.

A song is like a saddle: you ride it for a while, and if it's the right kind of song you can sing it for the rest of your life.

Everything about singing, I learned from busking. Everything I learned about songwriting, I learned from busking. Busking, you learn people, you learn about reading people. You learn about reading the atmosphere of the street. If you stand still in any city long enough, you see everyone pass you by. It's almost like you get to know personality types, just by watching people walk past. You get a sense for things.