Wydown Seventh grader Evan Robinson sat nervously at the bench of his baby grand piano in his downtown Saint Louis home. “Do I have to play?” he asked.

It is hard to believe that Robinson would be nervous to play in front of two reporters when he regularly performs in front of hundreds of complete strangers. The second his fingers touched the keys, however, the nerves were gone. His clear, tenor voice blended seamlessly with the piano accompaniment.

Robinson has been busking (or street performing) at the St. Louis Cardinals’ baseball games for the last year. In that time, he has been to about 30 baseball games, including a few of the St. Louis Ram’s football games before it got too cold.

He plays piano and sings in hopes of earning a few tips, although his motivations go further than just earning money.

“It’s not about the money. It’s really about having fun,” Robinson said. He does have a plan for the money he makes, however. Robinson has his eyes set on a 1966 Mustang, the first car he hopes to get when he turns 16.

Robinson has been singing his whole life, claiming that he sung before he started speaking. Music has impacted his life since birth. His father Richard, a state acclaimed trumpet player in high school, and his mother Alyson, have been supportive of Robinson’s budding career and interest in busking.

“He’s always wanted to be a street performer,” Alyson said.

In December of 2012, Robinson’s lifelong dream of performing on the streets became a reality. He received his busking hat, a Yamaha keyboard and a busking permit for Christmas. Since Robinson started, the permits have been declared unconstitutional and unnecessary through a lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union of Eastern Missouri.

On a typical game night, Robinson will arrive at the stadium an hour and a half before the game starts or before the seventh inning, depending on the time of the game. Robinson likes to arrive early to give him plenty of time to set up. He brings his keyboard, a microphone and a generator and sets up outside of the baseball bar called Paddy O’s, a location where many fans pass by to get to the stadium.

Alyson and Richard accompany Robinson at nearly every one of his performances. Not only do the Robinson parents tag along to help with Robinson’s technical needs, but also to give support and make sure that Robinson is comfortable while performing.

Robinson quickly learned the unspoken rules of busking. Once, a music battle took place between him and a group of drummers.

“It was funny because there was a lot of competition between us. They were playing the drums, and I was singing, both of us at the same time,” Robinson said. The police eventually came and forced them both to leave.

“You just have to be respectful of people,” Alyson said.

Robinson typically plays a combination of popular music and oldies, including Billy Joel, Elton John, Michael Buble, Andy Grammer, Gavin Degraw and Jason Mraz. Robinson does not know how to read music, so he learns the songs by ear.

Robinson took piano lessons as a child, but he was not interested in the classical pieces customary to the piano. His teacher, evidently, was not used to teaching in any style other than the traditional one. “It was tough on the teacher and it was tough on Evan,” Alyson said.

Robinson’s lack of piano teaching did not stop him from flaunting his skill of playing by ear. His older sister Caroline, now 16, took piano as a child.

“She would be playing these beautiful pieces, and Evan would come up without having much training at all and play them. It would drive Caroline crazy,” Alyson said.

Now, Caroline plays the harp, but the rivalries have not ended.

“He’s constantly singing and my daughter is playing the harp so we have kind of dueling music,” Alyson said.

Robinson recently found a piano teacher that better fits his style. Steve Neale, the music teacher at Villa Duchesne, helps Robinson embellish the popular music he likes to play, as well as encourages Robinson to write his own music. Neale has even started to teach Robinson to read music, the very lesson that originally kept Robinson from pursuing piano when he was younger.

Robinson also takes voice lessons from Katie Kopff and dance classes with the American Dance Troupe. He dreams of becoming a professional singer or performing on Broadway, and he has begun chasing those dreams already.

In 2011 Robinson participated in the West County Talent Bash at the Central Park Amphitheater. Robinson was 11 at the time. He sang “I’ll Be There” by Jackson 5 and won, becoming the Teen Solo-Duet Champion and taking home a trophy.

March of 2013 Robinson auditioned for the X-Factor in Charleston, South Carolina. Although he did not make it past the first audition, he was advised by the auditioners to return next year after another year of perfecting his voice.

Robinson has one major goal for his busking.

“I’m trying to get my name out there and get discovered,” he said. This has already started to happen for Robinson. After just one season of busking he was offered radio time on a local station and was approached by country singer Rich McCreedy.

Robinson hopes to continue making contacts while he busks, but his passion is entertaining for the everyday people who pass him.

“People stop by and dance around or sing with me,” Robinson said. He does not seem to mind the attention, but his parents are bothered by one thing: girls.

“[Girls] will come up and ask for a picture with him … He looks a lot older than he is, but as soon as we tell them he’s 13, they leave,” Alyson said.

Although Alyson and Richard are protective of Robinson, they are also very supportive, and plan to stand by Robinson wherever he may go.

“We don’t know where he’s going to end up, but it will be something with music I’m sure,” Alyson said. “I just think that there are people in this world that can be really creative and Evan is one of them.”