Busker HoF 72 – JP McKendry Interview

• Interview by: Magic Brian
• Interviewee: JP McKendry
• Original Recording Date: March 21, 2016
• Date: Aired: October 15, 2016
• Location: Recorded in JP’s Hotel Room in Dubai during the Dubai Marina Mall Street Performers Festival.
• Music:
  1. Intro: “Buddy” Royalty Free Jingle available in Apple Computers’ GarageBand.
  2. Opening Music: “Look at ME” by: .357 Lover as found on ‘The Purchase of the North Pole’ recording.
  3. Closing Music: “Thank You” by: .357 Lover as played on ‘Diorama of the Golden Lion’ recording.
• Mixed and edited by: Magic Brian and David Aiken for The Busker Hall of Fame

Comments: Many street performers know JP as a sort of ‘Yoda’ of the street performing world. He has an uncanny knack for telling people exactly what they need to hear in the moment to make a positive change to their show almost immediately. This innate sense of what to say, how to say it, and when to say it is no doubt the direct result of JP himself being an enormous fan of the art form and a true student of the game.

Watch, study, learn, perform. Almost like wash, rinse, repeat… From the get go, JP wasn’t afraid of putting in the work required to become a great street performer. He respected each pitch and the performers on it so much that he’d watch, learn, and then perform at the least desirable times so he could grow his skill and understanding in an incremental way.

Magic Brian sat down with JP in Dubai to talk about his back story and discover how he came to become such an Icon from the Australian street scene – an Icon so beloved that, in 2014 when his battle axe tore through the flesh of his hand, the busking community rallied to raise money so JP could take the time needed to recover and heal before returning to the street with a rekindled love for every show he gets to perform and for every performer who has the balls to play on the street.

Visit JP on Facebook!

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS