Is it possible to jump into playing music in public, and go from tip-jar to actually popular enough to make it your job??

Yeah so basically, I'm getting a new job soon however now have the time to try this if I wanted to? Like, I see lots of individuals (or mini bands of like 2 people) around the city playing music and people can put a tip in. However I am guessing that is not as secure as a job. But what if I wanted to actually become a very popular musician / band with some people, and turn that into my job?? That seems very distinct from playing for tips, and honestly idk how people do that. Do they just jump in to playing music publicly and get super popular? Do they need money to start? Do they just hope that they make it big online via music videos?? Because I am pretty confident in my skills at writing and playing music; however, I don't know how to make this dream of mine come true :(