Who is Rob Potylo? GoFundMe raises over $75,000 for comedian Robby Roadsteamer arrested by ICE in Portland

Rob Potylo, better known as Robby Roadsteamer, was taken into custody and detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers outside the agency’s facility in Portland, Oregon, on October 14, 2025.

He is an artist, video producer, musician, comedian, and a “manic creative type,” who has appeared on the reality series America’s Got Talent, according to his Tumblr bio. According to the 50-second clip shared on Potylo’s YouTube channel, filmed by Sophia Showers Carew, he is seen dressed in a giraffe costume, holding a microphone, and performing in the streets outside the ICE headquarters.

“It’s about peace and love, it’s about rock and roll… Come on, ICE… Oh, here they come. They are not ready for prime time players… Wooh! Demolition…” Rob could be heard singing his rendition of Rod Stewart’s ‘Da Ya Think I’m Sexy’ in the first 30 seconds, before he was arrested.

As authorities put Rob Potylo’s arms behind his back and took him toward the facility, onlookers were heard saying:

“Leave him alone. What are you doing? He’s talking, he’s just talking.”

According to the video description, Robby Roadsteamer was on a “goodwill mission” to sing some Rod Stewart songs with the Portland Frog. However, it led to his immediate detention.

In the wake of his ICE arrest, a GoFundMe campaign was launched to help cover his legal expenses. It has raised $77,668 at the time of writing against the goal of $110,000.

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All you need to know about Rob Potylo

According to Wiki Fandom, Rob Potylo, 49, was born in Salem and raised in Boston, and is now based in Los Angeles. His real name is Louis Robert Potylo, and his alter ego is called Robby Roadsteamer. He has appeared in the 18th season of America’s Got Talent. He was, however, eliminated in the auditions round.

Rob Potylo has also appeared on Season 1 of the ABC revival of The Gong Show and in five seasons of the online mockumentary, Quiet Desperation. He calls himself a “progressive comedian protest singer” on his website, where he urges people to support his campaign against “MAGA Weirdos.”

Meanwhile, his YouTube bio reads:

“Robby Roadsteamer is the voice of the New Generation at Protests and stuff.”

Rob Potylo has over 108,000 subscribers on the platform, with more than 45 million views. He has 218,000 followers on Instagram, 222,000 followers on TikTok, and 58,700 followers on X.

On his 159,000-strong Facebook, Robby Roadsteamer describes himself as a “counter culture comedian.” He also believes that “art is spirituality,” according to his Tumblr.

Rob has previously used his Roadsteamer persona on Boston radio station WBCN 104.1 and collaborated with his close friend, the late professional wrestler Chyna, until her passing in 2016. He has also appeared on Ellen and teamed up with Jennifer Coolidge

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Rob Potylo is currently facing trespassing charges

According to his GoFundMe titled, “Robby Roadsteamer has been detained by ICE in Portland!” Rob Potylo has been charged with trespassing by ICE and is set to appear before a Portland court.

The description claimed that Rob was “dragged” into the ICE facility in Portland on Tuesday while he was on a “peacekeeping trip.”

“Robby Roadsteamer has been detained by ICE in Portland, Oregon, after a peacekeeping trip to heal the divide with the city battling ICE illegally grabbing innocent people off the streets in Portland,” the fundraiser read.

It further claimed, “He was singing with the Portland Frog when ICE started shooting pepper balls at him, then detained Robby… This is a battle for free speech! And Robby needs powerful lawyers. Anything you can give would be huge!”

Images and video of Rob Potylo’s arrest were also shared on GoFundMe, which has now raised over 70 percent of its goal from 2,800 donations.

According to fellow protestor Sophia Showers Carew’s version on Storyful, and later confirmed by Yahoo!, Robby Roadsteamer was shot in the chest with rubber bullets on Tuesday. He had to take a break before returning to the protest.

Carew claimed that officers asked Potylo and his fellow protesters to stay behind a marked blue line, and they obliged. However, he was still “targeted and detained” by agents. Later, Robby Roadsteamer was released after 45 minutes with a citation.

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According to Consequence, a clarinet player named Oriana Korol was also detained outside of the ICE headquarters in Portland earlier this week.