Several nights a week, busker and YouTube (YT) phenom Dovydas sets up in a crosswalk on St. Armands Circle. His production goes quite a ways beyond the typical acoustic street performer. It includes, in no particular order: electric guitar, pedalboard, synthesizer, drum machine, Bose P.A. system, action cameras, headphones, a videographer (who happens to be his wife), and an assortment of microphones, stands, cables and thingamajigs. To date, he has over a million YT subscribers from around the world and gets recognized in just about every city he finds himself in when he travels. He has a Wikipedia entry, sponsorships and a growing collection of free gear. One could make the assertion that Dovydas is a formal part of St. Armand’s entertainment programming, that he was invited to perform his particular brand of jaw-dropping covers and that someone somewhere is cutting him a check for the large crowds he draws.  But none of that is true. “I used to get harassed by the police a bit,” he says, “but I’ve gotten pretty familiar with codes and laws. It gets pretty awkward for them when they try to cite me for a violation that doesn’t exist.” It sure makes for good content on his YT channel, however. For the Lithuanian-born, one-time reality TV talent show contestant (search for “David Smash 2009” on YT), his rise to quasi-fame took a route outside of the traditional music industry machine.

CHECK OUT DOVYDAS' LATEST HIT ON YOUTUBE, '89 PLUS (IN MY MASERATI GAS TANK)'

“I went on TV, recorded an album and none of that worked. So, I came to America to ‘be a big star,’' he says in a parody of his Eastern European accent. He and his wife make a great living  with ad revenue from their millions of views. Yet there remains a disconnect between his internet fame and the real-life city he’s called home since 2012.“Playing on St. Armands has been great for me and I’m grateful to do it,” he says, “but I’d love to organize a proper concert with a stage and permits with the help of St. Armands Association.”

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