It's Monday at the State and
Lake Transit Authority station and Meisha Herron is strumming her acoustic guitar
to the sounds of Bob Marley. If she's lucky, Herron
will earn around $20 today.
"If I can buy a meal, it's a
good day," she said.
Herron is one of many
local musicians performing beneath Chicago's bustling city streets.
Maverick Neylon, guitar player for the underground group
"Connection," said most people don't realize that playing the
subway is a full-time job for some.
"We're out here everyday," he said. "This is what we do."
Neylon started playing the
subways after breaking up with his girlfriend. He said during their
relationship she constantly urged him to get out there, but Neylon
didn't think he was cut out for it. "I'm glad I finally took her
advice. It's the best decision I've made," he said.
The Connection members say that while playing the subways for money is not easy, they
love it too much to quit.
Herron, on the other
hand, would gladly leave the concrete tunnels for a more stable
stage.
Herron started performing
with a blues band in 1992, but felt that her raw acoustic sound
could be more effective on its own. So she went solo into the
subway. "I want to wait for a real stage to use the amps." But
until that happens, Herron will continue to get by on the pocket
change of generous Red Line riders.
Neylon said his biggest
problem with playing underground is image. "People waiting for the
train, a lot of them just assume we're homeless," he said, "It's
unfortunate, but it will always be there."
Neylon said the misconception
is offensive, because unlike panhandlers, performers work for their
money. "..we don't ask for anything," he said. "I want everybody to understand
that."
Ron Christian, Connection's lead vocalist, agreed. He said the stigma will stick as long as musicians continue to play streets and subways. Christian says he has, on occasion, had to rebuff offers of food.
"I don't want your food,
that's not why I'm here," he said. "Just 'cause I'm
down here singin' doesn't mean I'm hungry."
A performer at Jackson and State who calls himself "Winzall" said he isn't bothered by it.
"It's really about the way
the performers dress," he said, pointing to his Nikes and
silver watch. Winzall said he has also been offered food by subway riders, but he doesn't take offense. What bothers him are people who don't give anything.
"Some people will just watch
you the whole time and then they'll get right on the train without
giving any kind of payment," he said.
El rider Shaun Huhn
appreciates the underground performances and says Chicagoans should
have more respect for these musicians. "They provide entertainment
between dull jobs," he said. "They offer that escape."
Huhn said people need to
understand the difference between performers and panhandlers.
"It's ridiculous that people jump to these
conclusions; assuming that these musicians are begging for
money. Unfortunately it's part of our culture in
America. If you look at other countries, street performing is
respected."
Huhn thinks it would help if
the performers were more supportive of each other instead of just
"running on their own time slots."
"If they had more camaraderie
and people could see how hard they're working, they might not be
seen as beggars anymore," he said.
Herron expressed similar
sentiments.
"Chicago performers don't
support each other as much as performers in other cities. They're
always in competition with each other," she
said.
Christian doesn't
think support from fellow musicians is an issue, but says having only four legal CTA performance stations makes things
difficult.
"The only competition is for
the spot, it's on a first come, first serve basis," he
said.
The performers agreed there
are too few CTA stations to play. Ongoing Red Line closures haven't helped. Connection can usually be
found at their preferred State and Lake location, where lately the
wait is longer.
