[2][3] Abby first started street performing and busking as a means to make money traveling across the United States, primarily hopping freight trains.

Roach said the final straw came when city leaders approved a measure to turn the historic Flatiron Building, a favorite location for street performers, into a high-end hotel.

[12]Abby the Spoon Lady hosted a radio show on WSFM-LP in Asheville, North Carolina called Busker Broadcast, which centered around street performance and public space law.

[1] Her repertoire consists of a mix of Americana, early jazz, ragtime for string instruments, country blues, jug band, Western swing, Vaudeville, and Appalachian folk.

Musicians who have influenced her include Artis the Spoonman, Jimmie Rodgers, Hank Williams, Bill Monroe, Milton Brown and the Musical Brownies, Sleepy John Estes, Fats Waller, and Emmett Miller.