One-Man Street Bands To Be Regulated?

Earlier this week, a street musician settled with the city for $27,500. Felix Wilkins, 66, was arrested for playing his flute last March, and, whoops, music is legal. As the Associated Press puts it: “The agreement requires the city to inform police that playing, singing, and soliciting money in a public place are protected by the First Amendment.”

Yesterday, the Inquirer asked: Well, should we regulate street musicians? People tend to like street musicians in downtown areas, even if they suck, Lea Sitton Stanley reported, so the answer’s no, right?

The Center City District’s Paul Levy, who we last saw suing another state’s Restaurant Week, says the new mayor should regulate street musicians for quality. It happens in Paris and New York!

More »

Musicians: Let Us Keep Rittenhouse Square Vibrant

As you may remember, back in March 20-year-old Anthony Riley was arrested for singing in Rittenhouse Square.

And, since then, nobody’s been singing in Rittenhouse. The cops claim they’re actually doing everyone a favor. And by “everyone” I mean “rich people who moved in around a two-block public park and thought there wouldn’t be any noise.”

“People are happy as can be that police are keeping the musicians from disturbing the peace,” police spokesman Capt. Ben Naish said yesterday.

Those damn street musicians! Always playing their entertaining jingles and making Rittenhouse Square vibrant for free!

(A little bit after Riley was arrested, he also appeared on the Fox 5 o’clock news — aka the Kerri-Lee Halkett news — and explained his plight. The story’s not on Fox’s website, but City Councilman Frank Rizzo said on the report he was starting a program to get permits for people to play in the park if they — of course — pay a fee! This is what I remember; I could be wrong. That seems to also be the rule now, so maybe Rizzo would let them play for cheaper, or for free or something.)

And so, yesterday, to protest the permit one has to obtain to legally play music in Rittenhouse Square, a group of musicians got a permit and raised hell in RIttenhouse Square! And by “raised hell,” I mean, “played music to the enjoyment of all.”

The protest, of course, included on Larry West, the mohawked 22-year-old candidate for mayor who legally can’t even run for mayor. (You have to be 25.) While I was writing this update, of course, Larry West actually called me randomly. But of course!

“It’s about a right to perform in a public place,” said Larry West, the mohawked 22-year-old who made headlines two months ago when he announced he was running for mayor. “I really support this because I’m a musician myself, albeit a bad one.”

Wow! Musician, ineligible mayoral candidate, activist… is there anything Larry West can’t do? Do you think the Philadelphia Soul could use another defensive back?

Music fills Rittenhouse in a show of solidarity [Metro]
Rittenhouse Square … Where only birds can sing [Metro]
[Photo also via Metro, taken by Brian X-Ray McCrone]