--- title: New York Subway Performers to Rally for Busker Was Arrested On Tape description: The video has almost been viewed 500,000 times canonical: https://time.com/3528961/new-york-subway-performers-rally-for-arrested-musician/ author: Laura Stampler article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2014-10-21T17:26:54.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-04-13T07:13:56.935Z og:title: New York Subway Performers to Rally After Busker Arrest Goes Viral og:description: The video has almost been viewed 500,000 times og:url: https://time.com/3528961/new-york-subway-performers-rally-for-arrested-musician/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: TIME og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: New York Subway Performers to Rally After Busker Arrest Goes Viral twitter:description: The video has almost been viewed 500,000 times twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production --- # New York Subway Performers Rally for Arrested Musician by [Laura Stampler](https://time.com/author/laura-stampler/) ## Laura Stampler Oct 21, 2014 5:26 PM UTC by [Laura Stampler](https://time.com/author/laura-stampler/) ## Laura Stampler Oct 21, 2014 5:26 PM UTC Buskers in New York City planned a demonstration Tuesday on behalf of a fellow subway performer whose arrest for serenading commuters was recorded by protesting bystanders and turned into a viral video, the [AP reports.](http://www.seattlepi.com/news/crime/article/Video-of-subway-performer-s-arrest-goes-viral-5837064.php) Adam Kalleen was [arrested](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/10/20/subway-musician-arrest-%5Fn%5F6017854.html) in an underground station in Brooklyn Friday after he refused a police offer’s request to put down the guitar and go. While the officer said that the 30-year-old needed permission to play, Kalleen and on-lookers said that the MTA does not issue permits. The [video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PEBZReXChoA), which has been viewed almost half a million times on YouTube, shows people protesting Kalleen’s arrest for loitering. “You don’t have something better to do? There are people breaking real laws,” someone shouts. The fedora-wearing busker can be seen singing Neil Young’s “Ohio,” a song written in 1970 by Neil Young about the Kent State shootings, to the [chants](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/10/20/subway-musician-arrest-%5Fn%5F6017854.html) “F\*\*\* the police” from the crowd. The MTA guidelines [state](http://web.mta.info/nyct/rules/rules.htm) that “artistic performances, including the acceptance of donations” are permitted, although that does appear to [conflict](http://codes.lp.findlaw.com/nycode/PEN/THREE/N/240/240.35) with state law that prohibits subway station loitering “for the purpose of soliciting or engaging in business.” Busker advocacy organizations exist to fight for street performers’ rights. An NYPD spokesperson told the [AP](http://www.seattlepi.com/news/crime/article/Video-of-subway-performer-s-arrest-goes-viral-5837064.php) that the department is looking into the arrest. \[[_AP_](http://www.seattlepi.com/news/crime/article/Video-of-subway-performer-s-arrest-goes-viral-5837064.php)\] ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3528961/new-york-subway-performers-rally-for-arrested-musician/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3528961/new-york-subway-performers-rally-for-arrested-musician/"},"headline":"New York Subway Performers Rally for Arrested Musician","datePublished":"2014-10-21T17:26:54.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T07:13:56.935Z","description":"The video has almost been viewed 500,000 times","url":"https://time.com/3528961/new-york-subway-performers-rally-for-arrested-musician/","keywords":["Newsfeed","viral","New York"],"thumbnailUrl":"","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Laura Stampler","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/laura-stampler/"}],"articleSection":"","image":[],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/tag/time-section-newsfeed/","name":"Newsfeed"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3528961/new-york-subway-performers-rally-for-arrested-musician/","name":"New York Subway Performers Rally for Arrested Musician"}}]}] ```