Drumming Their Way to Fame and Fortune

Brooklyn resident Roscil Lewis, 22, has been drumming his friend's African drums since Christmas. It was not a random act to make extra money at subway stations. In fact, he has 14 years of experience playing the steel drums.

"I wake up and play," says Lewis, waiting with his partner at the platform for the shuttle train in Times Square to go to Grand Central station. "I prefer Grand Central because it is more intimate."

In a matter of minutes, the shuttle pulls in and the two board the train. Several people who hop in the same train glance at drums.

Lewis plays drum with Kevin Sobers, 29, from Trinidad and Tobago.

They first met two months ago at the Times Square station when the sound of Sobers' drumming caught Lewis' attention. Lewis wasn't the only one with years of drumming experience; Sobers also had played the steel drums back in Trinidad and Tobago.

"Long time ago in Africa, drums were used as a way to invoke spirits and mark the beginning of tribal wars, but mostly it was used for the celebration of joy," Sobers explains.

The drums Lewis and Sobers play are made from goatskin, metal and wood. The red drum is the "high Djimbe" because of its high pitch and the yellow drum is the "low Djimbe" with low a pitch.

Sobers and Lewis do not have permits from the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) to play in subway stations. As a result, they have received two tickets of $25 each twice since they first started drumming in the subway station two months ago.

A spokeswoman from The Police Department's of Public Information explains that if a performer does not have a permit, then that person will be issued a summons. But a spokeswoman from Art for Transit, Metropolitan Transportation Authority program, says, "Other performers, those without permits are allowed to perform without permits, citing constitutional rights."

Art for Transit holds annual public auditions at Grand Central in May in front of a panel of judges. Those selected to receive permits are assigned specific locations for a given period of time. In addition, the performers are allowed to play anywhere in the station, even if that means 24 hours a day.

Lewis first came to the U.S. four years ago and since then, he has been to Washington, D.C., Philadelphia, and Tampa, Fla. to perform at various public places.

In May, he will take his drums to Tampa and play there until he decides to come back to New York City.

"If I did this in Trinidad, people would say, look at the crazy man," Sobers says. But New Yorkers like Karen Blescott enjoy music of all kinds. Waiting for the No. 4 train, Blescott says she prefers music to silence because "It takes you away from real life."