“Yeah Man” – The Indie Film and Album to Revive Your Traveling Spirit
Three musicians, one film maker; one ambitious dream that became reality.
Get ready for a career-launching trip that took four dreamers to busk their way from Barcelona to Venice and tell their story in a self-produced film – Yeah Man.
Before musicians in the world were confined to streaming at home and collecting donations online, busking was a familiar scene in public places all over the world. It may not be the most profitable way to earn a living, but those that are able to provide entertainment value to passersby have found it to be a sustainable practice, as the Underground Harmony in New York City did for close to 40 years.
For the Yeah Man project, it wasn’t just about busking. The artists wanted to make their own original music while traveling across borders, and in the process, create a film to document the journey of traveling musicians. And it turned out to be one beautiful experience of life itself.
The Formation of “Yeah Man”
Musicians Jonathan Thomsen and Kristóf Tóth met at a talent show a few years ago and the two started street performing together in Budapest, Hungary. While they had earned a decent amount from busking – for Kristóf, it was enough for him to buy his busking gear – their dream was to make an epic busking tour in Europe. In the summer of 2019, after Kristóf had finished high school, they decided to make their dream a reality.
They needed one more musician in the group, and Harry Stott, aka Mr. Harry, was invited to join. Having recently traveled back from India, Mr. Harry was planning to return home to the U.K. from Spain when he received a call from Jonathan about the project, to which he gave a quick and firm answer: “100 percent. I’m down.”
With a band of three who could each sing, compose, and play musical instruments, the trio was ready to embark when they were approached by another creator with an even more ambitious proposal.
Jonathan Thomsen
Kristóf Tóth
Mr. Harry
Márton Károly Tóth
Márton Károly Tóth and Arnold Schwarzenegger
“I’ve wanted to be a filmmaker since I was a child. I wanted to make my own Star Wars film,” says filmmaker Márton Károly Tóth, who is also the brother of Kristóf. After studying film in a couple of universities as well as having industry experience on big production sets like Terminator 6, Márton made the bold decision to quit school and find his own career path in film. Shortly after quitting school, he learned about Kristóf’s grand busking plan. “I said, ‘Cool! Can I join?’” He pitched the idea to make the trip into a film and thus became the fourth member of Yeah Man.
From Barcelona to Venice
Their trip began in Barcelona, and their final destination was Venice. Everywhere they went in between the two cities were spontaneously decided. “Jon provided the van,” says Mr. Harry, “and we camped wherever we went, staying in random locations and busking along the way on the street. The challenge was to drive from Barcelona to Venice and have random adventures at the same time.”
As the youngest member of the group, Kristóf had never busked anywhere else prior to this adventure. “I couldn’t believe the whole thing was happening,” he recalls, “it was so so so spontaneous. I thought this could only happen in Hollywood films!”
“There’s always a sense of ‘we are brothers and we need to look after each other.’ There’s a strong tribal connection that we all had.”
Indeed, what could be more fantastic and cinematic than a road trip where you get to create music, connect with new audiences, and document the entire journey on video? The question I have in mind is: What was it like, when the camera wasn’t rolling, to spend two weeks together, day in and day out?
Jonathan explains that they each found their roles throughout the trip: Jonathan himself was the driver, Mr. Harry was the cook, Kristóf was in charge of the dishes, and Márton, as the filmmaker, got away with these chores but was occupied with filmmaking preparations. “We had some interesting experience, made friends with people, and even got stopped by the cops!” (the full story of this encounter will be revealed in the film).
Mr. Harry adds: “I had only met Kristóf once or twice before, and me and Márton hadn’t even met [before the trip]. We work amazing together and now we’re so tight, and we’re all surviving in Budapest together. We’ve had a few cranky situations, but it’s how you resolve them. When there’s a big creative project on line it can be hard to keep relationships but we’ve managed to grow closer together. There’s always a sense of ‘we are brothers and we need to look after each other.’ There’s a strong tribal connection that we all had.”
tell me more about busking
As if on cue, all four members of the Yeah Man tribe start chuckling when I ask if they had expectations of making a decent earning from the busking trip. “No, I didn’t budget that at all,” Jonathan says and recounts one particular day when they could “finally eat” after having busked enough to buy some bread and eggs.
“If we weren’t filming, we could busk for more than a couple of hours at a time,” Márton explains. “But because it wasn’t just about busking, but also creating an album, making a trip, and having a complete experience, we probably got $20-30 dollars per session.”
What’s Next for Yeah Man?
The film will be released in the spring of 2021. In addition to the moving picture, they’re also preparing a new album, which will also be the soundtrack of the film.
“When we originally got together, we didn’t even have the idea to make an album,” says Mr. Harry. As the journey progressed, their impromptu jam sessions turned into songs, and by the end of the journey, the Yeah Man trio had 4-5 original tracks created that were a combined reflection of the trip. When the film comes out, they’ll also be celebrating the birth of a new album.
To help fund these releases, they’re looking for public support through their GoFundMe campaign. “The funders will not only get to see the film, but also get the downloadable album too,” says Márton.
The creators are already thinking next steps after their film and album releases, and are in the planning stage for Yeah Man 2.0. With more musicians, a longer preparation time, and more professional sound systems, they’re hoping to travel to different continents and invite fans to join along the way. Ultimately, they hope to turn Yeah Man into a show series to share their experience with the world.
And their journey has just begun.
Interview conducted and written by Louise Lau. Connect with her on social media @offstagetunes
All photos and video trailer courtesy of members of the Yeah Man project.
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