Local musician Ava Martina loves busking as a way to "get yourself out there" in the community.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
But with cash disappearing from our daily lives - and wallets - the young singer-songwriter was finding the scarf she laid out to collect tips coming back lighter.
"I found at first it was really easy to just put out a hat or put out a scarf like I like to do and get people to come by and if they've got a bit of money on them they'll drop it down and just support you in that way," she said.
"But especially since COVID, I feel like a lot of people stopped carrying cash on them and I could really see that you could put out a hat and I could quite notice a decline in support with that."
It's a problem facing the busking community, and one the ACT government is trying to solve with the launch of the Braddon Busking Hub pilot.
Musicians will be able to apply to the Hub and receive a free sign they can display during their performances with a QR code that passersby can scan to send a tip.
Minister for the Arts Tara Cheyne hoped the initiative - run by the City Renewal Authority and endorsed by Music ACT - would support local musicians and help ensure there was art in the territory "everywhere, for everyone, at every time".
"This is really about a way to support our buskers, make sure that we keep this sort of arts practice alive, because it does provide flexibility, it does provide an entryway for many artists who may be starting off with their careers," Ms Cheyne said.
"It's a very legitimate way of performing and engaging with the public. But we want to also make sure that our artists are paid fairly, and that's exactly what this does.
"It also reduces some of the overheads that might be there for buskers if they are looking to establish their own card payments scheme."
Transactions will be facilitated via busk.co, a platform that helps buskers create profiles, promote their music, and process cashless payments via Apple Pay, Google Pay and PayPal.
The pilot program also aims to activate a busking culture in Braddon, a suburb known for its small cafes, independent retailers and industrial architecture.
"I've done a little bit of busking in Canberra, but I've never really known which places to go, or there hasn't really been a dedicated street where I've seen lots of buskers," Ms Martina said.
"[Braddon is] the perfect place to just chill out in a corner and play some music.
"There is nothing I love more than watching people walk by and just have a smile on their face because you're playing some music in an unexpected place."