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 ​Everyone in Kansas City knows about the yearly event on the Plaza every Thanksgiving, where the switch is flipped for Christmas. The lights are beautiful and the tradition is longstanding. If you haven’t been to the Plaza yet in 2015, drive down, but make sure to leave enough time to swing by Crown Center.
 
The mayor’s Christmas tree, the lights, the skating rink all weave together to showcase Christmas and the wonder of winter.  It could be I’m partial since Crown Center is near my neighborhood or that it's seems to get "little sister" billing to the Plaza. Whatever the reason, It’s a dazzling display of lights and beauty, all white and twinkling. There’s still time to grab the family, brave the cold and enjoy a visit. 

For more Christmas events, Visit KC has a list of things to do in the city this season.

​Marvin Hollinshed can’t remember wanting to do anything else but make music. He got close once, when he lived in Denver and played with a group. They’d been together six years and had the opportunity to record, but the group fell apart before they got to the recording studio. For decades his dream was to play professionally, but it never worked out until he started busking at the City Market six years ago.
 
“I was trying to get work in clubs and would get a gig every two or three months, but it wasn’t enough,” said Hollinshed.
 
He had to earn money on the side to support his family, but he never gave up the dream of performing for his living. He’d build fences Monday through Wednesday and play at clubs Thursday through Saturday.  Then a friend who lived in Detroit suggested he play on the street. Hollinshed thought he’d give it a try. Before he set up shop Hollinshed had to audition in order to be a busker at the City Market, but he breezed through that.
 
“The first weekend I came down, I had an outrageous day—more than I was making at the club,” said Hollinshed.
 
Besides paying the bills, playing solo has also made him a better musician. He has to be certain of his chord changes because he has no other musicians to cover up his mistakes. He likes playing at the City Market more than in clubs because he has more connection with his audience. In clubs people are drinking and talking and aren’t always listening to the musicians.
 
He’ll keep coming back because he loves his audience. He receives a warm response from children. Hollinshed smiles when he tells the story of the boy that asked his father to bring him to the City Market for breakfast so he could hear the flute. When he sets down his stool and opens his flute case, it’s the people that make this gig special for him.
 
“People come and thank me for the music I play,” said Hollinshed. “They appreciate all the music and the musicians. People from all over the world come to Kansas City and when they come, they come to the City Market. It’s the place to be.”
 
Marvin Hollinshed plays most weekends at the City Market and also during the lunch hour a few days a week.