 Since 2005 , " Imagine " has been played prior to the New Year 's Eve ball drop at New York City 's Times Square . Beginning in 2010 , the song has been performed live ; first by <unk> Cruz , then in 2011 by <unk> Green and in 2012 by Train . However , Green received criticism for changing the lyric " and no religion too " to " and all religions true " , resulting in an immediate backlash from fans who believed that he had <unk> Lennon 's legacy by changing the lyrics of his most iconic song . Green defended the change by saying it meant to represent " a world [ where you ] could believe what [ you ] wanted " . The event got media attention outside of the US , with Britain 's The Guardian stating " Lennon 's original lyrics don 't praise pluralism or interchangeable religious truths – they damn them " . 
