By Jill Colvin
DNAinfo Reporter/Producer
MIDTOWN — It takes a lot to stop jaded New Yorkers in their tracks. But 19-year-old performers Lonique Crawley, Wyane Micens and Stephen "Vaugn" Middleton are doing just that.
The group has spent the past three years singing and dancing as The Side Track Boyz in subway stations across Manhattan, after meeting as high school freshmen at the Brooklyn High School of the Arts. But unlike most underground acts that bother commuters more than they entertain them, the Side Track Boyz have been earning rave reviews from busy straphangers so mesmerized by their R&B harmonies and hip-hop moves that they skip their trains to watch.
"I'm impressed," said Emma Agu, a professional musician who runs Castle Hill Recording Studios in the Bronx, as he watched the group perform a mix of covers and original songs at the 53rd Street-Lexington Avenue station in Midtown East.
"That was a great thing they were doing," he said. "I think they should get signed."
For the group, never knowing who they'll be playing for is part of the thrill.
"It's just great singing and seeing people’s reactions," Crawley said after one recent performance.
The trio draws their inspiration from everyone from Prince and Michael Jackson to Destiny's Child and 'N Sync, and is part of the MTA's Music Under New York program, which allocates space to artists in stations throughout the city.
To stay on top of their game, the group practices at least twice a week, from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. Mondays and Fridays. Other days are spend writing songs for their upcoming album.
And while performing onstage may have its challenges, a subway audiences is a whole different game. Many commuters simply ignore them; a few like to taunt. Others want to join in.
"Some people jump up and start performing right there with us," said Crawley. "People lay down. People try to come up and dance with us. .... There's some random, crazy behavior," he said, laughing.
While group members could be thrown off in their early days by what was happening around them, today they relish the challenge of trying to win over the crowd.
"You have to command the attention of people who are there going about their business," he said, adding that, overall, those who listen are generally pleased.
"It's usually really positive,'" he said. "A lot of people are pleasantly surprised."
After years underground, the Boyz have also learned a thing or two about the best places to play.
The group said the best crowds are at West 34th Street/Herald Square and West 125th Street on the A line — where they can make up to $300 a day. They said the toughest crowds are at West 42nd Street and Sixth Avenue on the F line, where few people give.
After meeting the Boyz, Agu advised his fellow New Yorkers to keep their ears open and listen as they're rushing through stations underground.
"There are really talented people you can see in the subway... world-class artists. But because nobody's helping them right now, they’re just struggling to exist," he said.
One Upper East Side resident named Christine, 35, who declined to give her last time, was so excited about the group that she missed the train she'd been waiting to catch, not making it through the closing doors.
She said she could imagine seeing the group on T.V.
"They're pretty damn awesome... They have a lot of talent," she said, complimenting their singing, dancing and attitude.
"It put me in a good mood. Before I was feeling crappy. Now I'm happy," she said.
