‘Not bad,’ 1st-time busker delighted to earn S$125.30 after 40 minutes

SINGAPORE: When a woman who tried her hand (or should we say, voice) at busking for the first time earlier this week, it turned out to be a pleasant surprise for her and her keyboardist, thanks to a supportive “angel” and those who gathered round to watch them perform.

Rong Tin documented her experience on TikTok, where she showed that it was more nerve-wracking than probably most of us could ever imagine.

@rongtinn

Will be busking again this wed (28/5, from ard 7:30-9:30pm) in front of The Cathay! Come find me if you are free ❤️ #sg #busking

♬ original sound – Ronggg

While she was “super excited” about the experience, her first foray into busking did not start out smoothly at all, as the keyboard bag of her accompanist broke just as they left the car and headed outside 313@Somerset mall, where they were set to perform, which made her wonder if it was a “sign” of things to come that evening.

Luckily, the bag was soon fixed by her “awesome partner,” and they set up soon after.

However, she was beset by doubts, thinking, “What if nobody stops to watch our performance at all? What if we don’t get a single cent from today?”

The location hardly helped, as she realized while beginning to sing that her voice needed to compete with the other noises in the vicinity, leading her to quip, “Now I know why nobody actually picks this location.”

Nevertheless, not one to give up, they continued singing, and things began to turn when she saw one woman filming them.

“She looks like an angel to me,” she said. And then, another woman dropped a S$50 bill into the keyboard case, which served as their donation box.

In her video, Ms Rong thanked the two women, giving them a special shoutout because after that, “magically,” more people began dropping money into the case, and at one point, a small crowd had gathered around them.

They ended at 9:40 p.m. after their speaker ran out of battery, and counted their earnings in the car. Ms Rong and her partner ended up making S$125.30 for their maiden 40-minute performance and headed out to get “a nice supper” afterward.

“I think that’s not bad,” she said, adding that they also got a new speaker from the money they made that night.

Ms Rong also performed on Wednesday night in front of The Cathay.

Here’s a sample of her lovely voice.

@rongtinn

Want to turn your hobby into a source of income? Download WerkSG now 😀 Not only can u list ur services but also look for plenty of job opportunities! Most importantly, it’s free for all to use @WerkSG #fyp #werksg #sg #sgjobs

♬ original sound – Ronggg – Ronggg

You can find out more about Ms Rong here. /TISG

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