A busker has been praised for how she handled a complaint after sharing footage of a rather uncomfortable exchange on TikTok:
Singer Charli Mason (@ccharlimason) posted a video on her TikTok page recently, captioning it: “Yawn.”
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In the clip, she is seen singing on the street as she ‘notices an angry looking man shaking his head’ at her. She stops singing and moves over to the man, asking with a smile: “Are you okay?”
The man asks if Mason is ‘aware of the maximum volume for buskers’, saying he could hear her ‘right up the high street’.
He continues: “Some people have hearing problems. It’s really painful, it’s far too loud.”
Mason then replies: “Okay, no problem. The council have been down today and they haven’t said anything.”
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The man tells her: “Well, they may not do, but I’m just telling you that there are people – and I’ve got some friends as well – they had to cover their ears, it was so painful. Have you ever heard of hyperacusis?”
According to the NHS, hyperacusis - also known as noise sensitivity - is when 'everyday sounds seem much louder than they should', and can 'sometimes be painful'.
When Mason says she hasn’t heard of the condition, he says: “Well, look it up, and you’re causing some real pain.”
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Trying to find a resolution to the conversation, Mason asks: “So is this you politely asking me to turn down? Because that’s fine.”
The man then says yes, thanking her before walking off.
Mason added in the video: “If you ever need a busker to turn it down, just ask.”
While some people sympathised with the man, saying ‘hyperacusis is very painful’, others praised Mason for her calm and polite way of dealing with the situation.
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One person commented: "You handled that so well hon … The older generation just can’t cope with the energy of young people... keep going lovely.”
Someone else said: “You handled that with so much grace and elegance. You go girl. I could never.”
A third wrote: "I will never understand people who moan at buskers YOU CAN LITERALLY WALK AWAY! They act like you're inside their living room."
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Someone else who once suffered with the condition could empathise with the man, saying: "I had hyperacusis for a long time and I carried earplugs around, he’s not wrong about it being painful but he could just move in quickly."
But Mason replied: "Either that or politely asked me to turn down. I am always happy to oblige if I’m disturbing someone, this just isn’t the right way to approach it."
Jess Hardiman