A Clondalkin busker has hailed Dublin as “a new city” after musicians returned to streets after Covid restrictions were eased.
Zoe Clarke has been performing all her life but along with all the buskers of Ireland, her career took a major blow during the pandemic.
She told Dublin Live: “Town was so good over the weekend. The atmosphere was amazing on Saturday, especially for Dry January when people don’t go out and they’re trying to save their money.
“I really enjoyed going back to busking as normal. It’s like a new city, it’s great to see that we can start playing gigs again.
"That’s what I want to be doing as much as possible. I love busking and I want to be playing gigs in different venues.
“I’ve been doing music as long as I can remember. I started playing guitar when I was five.
"I always thought busking was cool. Dermot Kennedy used to busk, it’s something I always wanted to do.
“In 2018 my sister helped me get my licence and bought my speaker, and since then I’ve been busking.
“I was in a rock school, we did showcases and that’s where my confidence came from. I used to get very nervous when I first started.”
Zoe performed with Allie Sherlock over the weekend after struggling to busk since March 2020 and she was delighted to get back to doing what she loves.
“Gigs were cancelled because of Covid and busking wasn’t allowed during the pandemic but I kept learning new songs, writing songs and I brought out an EP to keep myself busy," she said.
“The entertainment industry suffered the most during Covid. I was doing garden gigs for my neighbours which was fun.
"But we kept peopled entertained during the pandemics even though it was tough for us to create.”
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