Mos Def says he was only trying to kick some righteous science to the public when he was busted outside the MTV Video Music Awards for operating a sound device without a permit during an impromptu street performance.
The rapper/actor allegedly rolled up in a pickup truck to Radio City Music Hall at about 10 p.m. Thursday and quickly set up a portable stage near a crowd gathered outside.
Mos Def then started performing his 2005 jam “Katrina Clap,” which slams President Bush’s response to last year’s massive Gulf Coast hurricane.
But Def, born Dante Terrell Smith, never got a permit for his show, and cops shut him down.
“Mos Def did not set out to get arrested or break laws,” his spokeswoman, Carleen Donovan, told The Post. “His only intention was to remind people that after one year, the people hardest hit by Katrina still need the support of all Americans.”
Def, 32, was given a summons for “operating a sound-reproduction device without a permit,” cops said.
His brother, Theron, was also given a summons, along with another member of the rapper’s crew.
Def got through only a few verses before cops made him drop his mike.
“As soon as he was made aware of the police presence, he shut everything down,” Donovan said. “His staff and team were willing to comply as well, but the police overreacted.”
The performance was not part of the VMAs.
Donovan said Def was not available for comment yesterday.