When hip-hop rap artist Nelly performed in concert at the Atlanta Civic Center; outside the venue, independent Hip-Hop group Below Tha Surface diligently promoted their new album release "Push Play."

At approximately 7:30pm the night of the concert, Atlanta police seized the hip-hop group Below Tha Surface in the midst of hanging promotional posters for their album. Police confiscated the hip-hop group's posters and flyers, and arrested them on site. A court date was set for Friday, April 29th, 2005 at the Atlanta courthouse.

Their record company, 10th Planet Productions, issued the following statement then: "It's unfortunate for Below Tha Surface, but we fully support their driven efforts to promote their own album release. They have a lot of character and aren''t too proud to get out in the streets to generate a buzz for themselves. We''re confident that the court hearing will go well on Friday."

Note to independent artists in Atlanta: It's against Section 138-60 to put up your posters to promote your album.

The sentence? “The sentence handed to us as a result of our arrest the week before was…..16 hours of community service! Yep, we have 30 days to complete it, or we go to the slammer for 30 days”; according to the groups web site.

Below Tha Surface has built a strong following in the Southeast, known for their clever, humorous rhymes and energetic stage performance. They have scored appearances on Showtime at the Apollo, Spike TV, and Earthlink television commercials. The group's first single, "Southern Belle," which features Scales from Nappy Roots, is already making a lot of noise in the clubs and college stations in the Southeast. "Push Play" was released in early April, and is experiencing strong sales for an independent release.

Visit Below Tha Surface web site HERE