‘You are too loud!’ Man shouts at buskers, points finger repeatedly to demand lower volume at Pasir Ris MRT
A busker said she felt “uncomfortable” when a man shouted at her group and got “very close” to them, demanding that they lower their volume at Pasir Ris MRT station.
On Oct 3, TikTok user @jazzicalee uploaded a video of her group busking at the MRT station when a man began telling them to lower their volume, eventually raising his voice, getting close and pointing at them.
She and her group eventually stopped busking and packed up, citing concerns for their safety.
The video has since amassed over 190,000 views and more than 240 comments.
Man approaches buskers to lower volume
The TikTok video showed the group of three buskers — singer @jazzicalee in a white T-shirt, accompanied by a guitarist and keyboardist — performing at the MRT station outside an itea stall.
A few seconds into a song, an on-screen caption reads, “an uncle approaches”, as the man can be heard telling the group, “you are too loud”, with his voice growing louder.
“His voice was almost as loud as our 4 instruments combined,” the caption read.
In an attempt to accommodate him, the guitarist stops playing, while the singer and keyboardist lower their volume.
“Feeling uneasy but trying to stay composed,” the on-screen caption says.
The man then walks towards the keyboardist, pointing at her and raising his voice as he demands that she lower the volume.
The video then cuts off, showing jazzicalee packing up her belongings, with the caption: “Telling my bandmates to stop and pack up for their safety.”
She subsequently said that the police arrived to ask them some questions.
According to her, the man had left before the police arrived. She can be heard telling the officers which direction he had gone in and describing him as wearing “all blue”.
‘The situation was uncomfortable for us’
Speaking to Stomp, singer Jazzica Coco Lee said the incident happened on Oct 2 at around 11.50am, while she and her group were busking from 10am to noon.
The 25-year-old music student described the situation as “uncomfortable” for the group, as the man raised his voice and repeatedly told them they were too loud.
Lee added that he approached them from the left, pointing at them and getting very close to her guitarist and keyboardist, which made her “very worried”.
Thankfully, she said several passers-by stepped forward to help de-escalate the situation.
She recalled that one father stood between the man and her keyboardist while holding his young daughter’s hand, while another passer-by told them to ignore the man and continue playing.
However, concerned for her bandmates’ safety, Lee ultimately decided to stop the performance and end the busking session.
As they were packing up their equipment, Lee said the police arrived, although she noted that they were not the ones who had called them and were unsure who did.
She added that the officers asked what had happened and whether they were okay, before taking down their particulars and statements and asking about the man.
Regarding the volume of their busking, Lee said they typically use a sound meter app on their phones to ensure their volume levels remain within the National Arts Council’s (NAC) stipulated limit of 65 decibels.
They also use a mixer and speaker system to help prevent distortion and peaking, she added.
“We do our best to keep our volume at an appropriate level while still being able to perform properly.”
“The support has been very encouraging, especially after what happened,” she said. “We are grateful that there are people who appreciate having live music in the community and support us in continuing to perform.”
Stomp has reached out to the police.
Man follows father who stepped in to McDonald’s
Netizens filled the comments with messages of support and encouragement for Lee and her team.
Some users pointed out that the group had a permit to busk, with one describing the man’s behaviour as “harassing”.
“If he doesn’t like it, he can walk away,” another said.
Many said they would have sang even louder instead.
“Mad props for keeping cool and composed,” a commenter wrote.
The father who stepped in, as mentioned by Lee, also left a comment claiming that the man followed him to McDonald’s after the incident.
Speaking to Stomp, the father, who wished to be known only as Yeo, said he had brought his 4-year-old daughter to grab a meal when he saw a man approaching Lee’s busking group.
At first, Yeo said he could not tell what was happening, so he moved closer to listen in.
He then heard the man “non-stop yelling” at the group to lower their volume.
When the group continued singing, Yeo said he believed the man became more agitated, moving closer to the group and pointing at the keyboardist’s face.
“So that’s when I tried to stop the man. One hand holding my daughter and one hand trying to separate them,” he said.
Yeo pointed out that the group had a permit and licence to busk.
“Cannot just stand there and watch. Best is to try to stop the tension,” he said.
However, when he walked into McDonald’s and was ordering at the self-order kiosk, Yeo said the man followed him and stood behind him.
Yeo said the man then told him: “You know why I had to tell them to lower their volume? Because it’s way too loud.”
He added that the man continued trying to explain himself, but Yeo ignored him.
Once Yeo had placed his order, he said the man went on to shout at a McDonald’s staff member over another issue he was unaware of.
“I didn’t really bother because my attention was on my daughter,” said Yeo.
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