Known as the Warlord, the Ghetto Gladiator, the Poor Peoples' Governor, and… Read Full Bio ↴Known as the Warlord, the Ghetto Gladiator, the Poor Peoples' Governor, and the Five Star General, Bounty Killer is one of dancehall reggae's most enduring artists and influences throughout the industry, known for his intricate, war-like lyrics, sound system dubplates, and stable of artists which has changed over the years but never lessened in popularity.

Bounty Killer, aka Rodney Basil Price, was born 12.06.1972 in the Trenchtown area of downtown Kingston, Jamaica, with his family moving to a next ghetto area of Riverton City (formerly known as Dungle), and finally Seaview Gardens, Kingston, as a young child. One of nine children to his mother "Miss Ivy" and father, owner of a small sound system, Rodney first picked up the mic as a deejay at nine years old.
He nearly lost his life to gun violence at 14, but thankfully fully recovered from the bystander assault and soon began his music career as Bounty Hunter. He joined neighborhood friends Nitty Kutchie and Boom Dandemite in seeking out opportunities in country as well as town, performing for Metromedia and Bodyguard, as well as other local area sound systems. It was during a chance meeting with brother of King Jammy, Uncle T, which would change his career forever.

Bounty's initial recordings were done by Uncle T, after Jammy himself was skeptical due to the violent nature of the tracks. Jammy eventually relented upon witnessing the rising popularity of the deejay.
His first hit record on the sound system circuit was Dub Fi Dub and other recordings with the King Jammys label were compiled into 1993's Jamaica's Most Wanted, later released as Roots, Reality and Culture. By 1993, now known internationally as Bounty Killer, Rodney was quickly becoming regarded as one of the fiercest and most lyrically gifted of the next generation of deejays. Hits such as Coppershot, Lodge, and Spy Fi Die quickly propelled Bounty to an upper-echelon deejay, and sound system dubplate favorite. "Coppershot" was actually a hit in New York before Jamaica, which left Bounty as personally indebted to the American city as much as his native Kingston. 1993 also brought the beginning of a long, on-and-off rivalry with Beenie Man, which culminated in a battle at Sting 1993, extended through the mid-90s and flared up again in the latter half of the following decade.

Bounty won the war at Sting 1993 and his legacy as dancehall superstar was cemented as a result. The mid-1990s brought hit after hit, such as Cellular Phone, Not Another Word, and Mama. The heated war-of-words with Beenie Man gave the world many popular tunes from each side, including Ask Fi War, Suspense, and War Beyond The Stars.

The mid-90s era culminated in the release of My Xperience in 1996. The most comercially successful album of Bounty's career, and widely considered one of the best dancehall albums of the decade, it mixed popular dancehall tracks, such as Living Dangerously featuring Barrington Levy and Fed Up, with hip-hop crossover duets featuring Jeru The Damaja, Raekwon and, most popularly, The Fugees.
The decade closed out with two more albums, Next Millenium, which featued more hip-hop guest combinations, and 5th Element, which returned to a more hardcore-dancehall style.

By the year 2000, Bounty Killer, along with Capleton, was still considered the top deejay in the business, particularly with the waning popularity (at the time) of Beenie Man, and refocused career path of Buju Banton. This was due as much to being the most in-demand artist for dubplate recordings by sound systems as to actual studio material.
In 2001, he was featured with No Doubt on their international hit Hey Baby, and appeared with the band for a pre-game performance at the 2002 NFL Super Bowl.
In 2002, Bounty released his most ambitious project since My Xperience, a double CD (released seperately), titled Ghetto Dictionary: The Mystery and Ghetto Dictionary: The Art of War. While not nearly the commercial success of My Xperience, underground sales were strong, and it featured the smash dancehall hit Sufferah.

Since the Ghetto Dictionary project, Bounty Killer's influence has mostly been behind-the-scenes, working with young talent and bringing new dancehall reggae stars to the forefront. He has been credited with bolstering the careers of, among others, Elephant Man, Busy Signal, Wayne Marshall, Baby Cham, and Vybz Kartel.
He currently oversees a stable of artists known alternately as The Alliance and Gully, which includes Mavado and Aidonia.

Killa Is A Killa
Bounty Killer Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Teflon mek dem jump, blue steal mek dem bawl, yallo
And when dem hide my gunshot blow dem through di wall, well

A killa is a killa, wherever he may be
Man slaughta, fassyhole and execute dem family
And a wah is joke to dem, tell dem it's dead to we
Dem tink it over now mi return wid di World War Three

Killa is a killa, wherever he may be
Man slaughta, fassyhole and execute dem family
And a wah is joke to dem, tell dem it's dead to we
Dem tink it over now mi return wid di World War Three

Man a killa so mi tek life
Mi have a jump pon a black reign fi wet life
A which fassy waan gamble and bet life?
Teflon tek off so fast like jet life

Mi gun nuh play domino but it check life
WW dot askel net life
Boom, K-47, stop breath life
And when yuh gone I'll see yuh in yuh next life

A killa is a killa, wherever he may be
Man slaughta, fassyhole and execute dem family
And a wah is joke to dem, tell dem it's dead to we
Dem tink it over now mi return wid di World War Three

Killa is a killa, wherever he may be
Man slaughta, fassyhole and execute dem family
And a wah is joke to dem, tell dem it's dead to we
Dem tink it over now mi return wid di World War Three

Mi hear seh after Sting dem all go fake off a ting
Warhead a warshed fi deh a taste off a ting
Fagaffi have di mic and all a sing off a ting
Just like I get robbed dem all a bring off a ting

Mi hear him have him war tongue and leff tangalin'
Pass mi a hand grenade dem mek mi drop outta pin
Go dung I give dem three I go boom out yuh sin
But mi black like yuh must see white light peakin'

Grow up knock a man do diss di man dem ting
Di man dem shoulda hold yuh and bun up yuh skin
Mek likkle shame dem juke yuh up wid a pen
Killa be dem dashy mi nah bend, well

A killa is a killa, wherever he may be
Man slaughta, fassyhole and execute dem family
And a wah is joke to dem, tell dem it's dead to we
Dem tink it over now mi return wid di World War Three

Killa is a killa, wherever he may be
Man slaughta, fassyhole and execute dem family
And a wah is joke to dem, tell dem it's dead to we
Dem tink it over now mi return wid di World War Three

Teflon mek dem jump, blue steal mek dem bawl, yallo
And when dem hide my gunshot blow dem through di wall, well!
Teflon mek dem jump, blue steal mek dem bawl, yallo
And when dem hide my gunshot blow dem through di wall

Man a killa so mi tek life
Mi have a jump pon a black reign fi wet life
A which fassy waan gamble and bet life?
Teflon tek off so fast like jet life

Mi gun nuh play Domino but it check life
WW dot askel net life
Boom, K-47, stop breath life
And when yuh gone I'll see yuh in yuh next life

Man a killa so mi tek life
Mi have a jump pon a black reign fi wet life
A which fassy waan gamble and bet life?
Teflon tek off so fast like jet life

Mi gun nuh play Domino but it check life
WW dot askel net life
Boom, K-47, stop breath life
And when yuh gone I'll see yuh in yuh next life

Man a killa so mi tek life
Mi have a jump pon a black reign fi wet life
A which fassy waan gamble and bet life?
Teflon tek off so fast like jet life

Mi gun nuh play Domino but it check life
WW dot askel net life
Boom, K-47, stop breath life

And when yuh gone I'll see yuh in yuh next life
...

Overall Meaning

In "Killa Is a Killa," Bounty Killer asserts his status as a killer and warns others of what will happen if they come across him. Teflon is mentioned in the first verse, a nod to his fellow dancehall artist who often collaborated with Bounty Killer. The lyrics depict a violent world, where killing is commonplace, and executing one's entire family is par for the course, emphasizing the brutality of the world they live in. The song also seems to address enemies of Bounty Killer, warning them of his power and what will happen if they try to mess with him or his crew.

The chorus stresses that a killer is a killer, no matter where they are, and what they will do to protect themselves and their territory. The lyric "dem tink it over now mi return wid di World War Three" suggests that if someone tries to mess with Bounty Killer, he will bring the entire world against them.

The second verse talks about how Bounty Killer is quick to take a life, and that he has a thirst for violence. He uses his gun as if it is a game, checking life off like in dominoes. "WW dot askel net life" seems to suggest that he is using a website called "Word War Dot," asking for someone else to verify his kills. The song concludes with him reiterating his status as a killer and warning others to stay away from him.

Line by Line Meaning

Teflon mek dem jump, blue steal mek dem bawl, yallo
Teflon makes them jump and blue steel makes them cry out in pain.

And when dem hide my gunshot blow dem through di wall, well
And when they try to hide, I shoot them through the wall.

A killa is a killa, wherever he may be
A killer is a killer no matter where he is.

Man slaughta, fassyhole and execute dem family
He kills without mercy and executes entire families of his enemies.

And a wah is joke to dem, tell dem it's dead to we
His enemies laugh at his threats but he is serious and will kill them all.

Dem tink it over now mi return wid di World War Three
They are now realizing the seriousness of his threats and are awaiting his return with a vengeance.

Mi hear seh after Sting dem all go fake off a ting
After the concert (Sting), they all pretend to be tough.

Warhead a warshed fi deh a taste off a ting
Even Warhead is afraid to pick a fight with him.

Fagaffi have di mic and all a sing off a ting
Even his enemies are trying to imitate his style.

Just like I get robbed dem all a bring off a ting
Just like when he got robbed, his enemies are bringing their weapons to fight him.

Mi hear him have him war tongue and leff tangalin'
He heard that his enemy is bragging about his bravery but he can't back it up.

Pass mi a hand grenade dem mek mi drop outta pin
Give him a hand grenade and he will use it without hesitation.

Go dung I give dem three I go boom out yuh sin
He will kill three of his enemies in one shot and make them all explode.

But mi black like yuh must see white light peakin'
He is so dangerous that his enemies see white light before they die.

Grow up knock a man do diss di man dem ting
He grew up fighting and knows how to take out his opponents.

Di man dem shoulda hold yuh and bun up yuh skin
His enemies deserve to be held and tortured to death.

Mek likkle shame dem juke yuh up wid a pen
He tells his enemies to feel ashamed for trying to fight him with a pen.

Killa be dem dashy mi nah bend, well
He is a killer and nothing they do can break him.

Teflon mek dem jump, blue steal mek dem bawl, yallo
Teflon makes them jump and blue steel makes them cry out in pain.

And when dem hide my gunshot blow dem through di wall
And when they try to hide, I shoot them through the wall.

Man a killa so mi tek life
He is a killer and takes lives without remorse.

Mi have a jump pon a black reign fi wet life
He has a gun and is ready to kill at any moment.

A which fassy waan gamble and bet life?
Which fool wants to gamble and risk their life against him?

Teflon tek off so fast like jet life
He moves fast like a jet and is always on the move.

Mi gun nuh play Domino but it check life
His gun doesn't play games, it takes lives.

WW dot askel net life
He uses his gun to take lives and doesn't care about the consequences.

Boom, K-47, stop breath life
He kills with bombs and other powerful weapons.

And when yuh gone I'll see yuh in yuh next life
He is so confident in his killing abilities that he knows he will see his enemies in the next life.