He was born at Kingston's Victoria Jubilee Hospital, and was one of six children. Originally from Waterhouse, Kingston, he was raised in the Waterford district in the community Portmore, Jamaica. Adidja attended Calabar High School in Kingston but was expelled as a teenager. Determined to continue his education, he completed his studies at a tutorial technical school.
He was exposed to a wide variety of music from a tender age by two uncles who were themselves aspiring musicians. Every weekend he was treated to new musical offerings, on his uncle's old component set, ranging from Sam Cooke to country and western ballads to Ninja Man, who became one of his musical heroes.
At 10 his favorites included artists as diverse as Ninja Man, Papa San, Charlie Chaplin, Will Smith and KRS-1, all of whose lyrics he would study word-for-word, performing them later for friends.
He decided he wanted to be a deejay and began writing his own lyrics when he was 11. Eager to flaunt his skills, Adidja and his friends frequented the weekly Gong Talent Show at the Coney Amusement Park on the outskirts of Kingston. To their chagrin, they were always gonged off when they got a chance to perform.
Undeterred by his weekly failure to impress the talent show audience, Adidja decided to hone his skills and concentrate on winning over his own community of Waterford until he was ready for bigger things. With that goal in mind, on weekends he would practise on neighborhood sound systems Soul Signal and Electric Force.
In 1993, Adidja recorded his first single, "Love Fat Woman," for Alvin Reid's One Heart Label under the name Adi Banton, a name he chose in tribute to a role model, Buju Banton. He recorded several more tracks for local producers, perfecting his craft.
In 1996 he and two friends, Mr. Lee and a singer called Escobar, decided to form a group. One night, after watching a movie about Pablo Escobar and his infamous cartel, Adidja came up with a name for his trio: Vibes Cartel.
Vybz Kartel's new role as Killer's protege caught the attention of the public and led to a meteoric career rise, first as a ghost-writer for Bounty, Elephant Man and other members of the Scare Dem Crew, followed by collaborations with Bounty Killer, such as "Gal Clown" and "Girls Like Mine (Liquid Riddim)."
He came into his own with early hits like "Gun Clown," "Guns Like Mine (Trafalga Riddim)," "Badman (Panty Raid Riddim)," "Bus Mi Gun Like Nuttn," "Most High (Mexican Riddim)" and "War Organizer (Clappas Riddim)." He also had a string of successful collaborations with Wayne Marshall, including "New Millennium (Mad Antz Riddim)," "Why (Krazy Riddim)" and "Why Again (Good To Go Riddim)." This unprecedented debut led to Vybz Kartel being crowned 2002 Deejay of the Year at Stone Love's 30th anniversary, a feat unmatched by any new artist in dancehall.
Kartel has--aside from incredible rhymes and subtle, clever pop culture references--a unique lyrical flow all his own. It is to be noted that Kartel rarely does dance "chunes" along the lines of Elephant man or Beenie Man. Nevertheless, he has already had several high-profile collaborations with international hip-hop and pop stars, and is being touted as the next big thing in dancehall.
In terms of singles sold, he has had the second-best year on the 2003 reggae charts, outsold only by Elephant Man, and has released two albums this year for UK label Greensleeves. He was featured twice on the Def Jamaica project, and nominated for Source, VIBE and UK MOBO awards. His MOBO nominations, along with those of Beenie Man, Elephant Man and Sizzla, were subsequently withdrawn over concerns of homophobia, a common issue with dancehall reggae in general.
His video for "New Millennium/Why," with Wayne Marshall, though decidedly low-budget, has seen play on MTV. His underground following is so large that a bootleg version of, in his own words, "a very, very low budget film" made in 2001 has begun circulating. He has two albums, several mixtapes and a prolific library of singles.
In 2005, Vybz and Bountkiller fell out after Vybz preformed a song with Di Angel, Beenie's former girl, "Yuh Know Yuh Baby Father." Vybz walked out of the Alliance. Aidonia also left, because he took Vybz side, falling out with Busy Signal and making the song "Adid A Mi Daddy Who Wa Vex Wan Vex." It was said Vybz took side with Beenie by showing up at his wedding. Vybz said Beenie was his artist and would not and that's as far as it went. Afterwards, he and Movado which led to throwing of words through songs like "Movado di Failla," "Them Start War and Dead" and "Them a Pu@#* Pon di Battle." But this mis happas only made Mr.Palmer express his war side.
Vybz is the head of the territorial gangland in Portmore known as the Gaza and Mavado is the same for the Gully. Due to their feud a physical war arose between people in the two areas. Fans loyal to each artist have taken part as well. Their fan base in the youths has been seen, as entire schools claiming to be Gully or Gaza supporters have been known not just in Jamaica but in other Caribbean countries such as Trinidad to break out into physical war resulting in stabbings and street fights.
Following the 2009 Summit of the Americas the Jamaican government called a meetings between Vybz Kartel and Mavado calling on them to end the war. Since its conclusion both artists have turned away from war songs and focused on different topics, Kartel on women and Mavado on uplifting the people, although both still make songs of all types.
Following differences with record label Greensleeves, Vybz Kartel changed his name to Addi Di Teacha near the end of 2006. All new material he produces will be released under this name. Greensleeves will continue to release his older, unreleased material under the name Vybz Kartel.
He now owns the label Portmore Empire, founded in 2007, on which releases new deejays' music. To clear up why this was done he had an interview with Antony Miller. "If I had join Moffia House, I would be taking side which I said I would not do," he said.
He owns a rum called STREET VYBZ as well as a condom line called DAGGERING.
Recently, he collaborated with artists like D.I. aka Daniel and Di Angel--Beenie man's former wife. But that's another story...
In 2011 Kartel has recently come under fire for bleaching his skin, something that is frowned upon in Jamaican culture and even Kartel spoken against it in past songs. He has come under even more fire for his rumored involvement in devil worship with a satanic group known as the Illuminati, which is known to have other popular musicains such as Jay-Z, Kanye West, Rihanna.
Bad Reputation
Vybz Kartel Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
We get a bad reputation
But mi nah stop hustle fi d paper
Society nuh ask mi nuh question.
Mi a ask as a ghetto yute
Please listen my situaton
Mi feel poverty and starvation
Weh u expect mi fi do
Mi waan food pon mi plate like any oda man
Mi ah hustle and feds jus ah collar man
Mi afi get mi hand nurture fi a set a plan
So by nex year mi can be a better man
Ghetto yute affi wise like soloman
Need a likkle bit a time dem a collar man
Remand remand from one jail 2 anoda one
Alla mi money gone inna mi lawyer hand
Yuh honour
Den if mi gone a prison
Ah who a gone care fi mi young son
Babylon still ah fight ghetto yute
But mi know one day better must come
From London city to Kingston
Ah nuff juvinille get fling dong
D system nuh care if we live or die
Mi call it
Ghetto yute trivilation
We get a bad reputation
But mi nah stop hustle fi d paper
Society nuh ask mi nuh question.
Mi a ask as a ghetto yute
Please listen my situaton
Mi feel poverty and starvation
Weh u expect mi fi do
Di system a pree me
Dem ah seh mi is a don nuh call me so
Tru mi help ghetto yute when all fi now
Why you do dat mr.officer
Why yuh come n search inna mi house ah fah
Weh u ah lock up shawty fuh
Yuh nuh see me wid nuh gun officer
Suh why u waan put one pon me for
Den if mi gone a prison
Ah who a gone care fi mi young son
Babylon still ah fight ghetto yute
But mi know one day better must come
From london city to kingston
Ah nuff juvinille get fling dong
Di system nuh care if we live or die
Mi call it
Ghetto yute trivilation
We get a bad reputation
But mi nah stop hustle fi d paper
Society nuh ask mi nuh question.
Mi a ask as a ghetto yute
Please listen my situaton
Mi feel poverty and starvation
Weh u expect mi fi do
In the song "Bad Reputation" by Vybz Kartel, he expresses his frustration with the negative perception of ghetto youth in society. Despite the poverty and starvation they experience, they are often judged harshly and given a bad reputation. However, Vybz Kartel is determined to continue hustling for money without caring about what society thinks. He pleads for people to listen to his situation and understand the difficult circumstances that he and other ghetto youth face.
Vybz Kartel also touches on the issue of police brutality and corruption. He questions why he is being labeled as a "don" and why the police are searching his house without a valid reason. He highlights the systemic issue of the justice system not caring about the well-being of ghetto youth, as shown by their mistreatment in juvenile detention centers.
Overall, "Bad Reputation" is a commentary on the challenges faced by ghetto youth in society and their struggle to survive in an environment that constantly judges and oppresses them.
Line by Line Meaning
Ghetto yute trivilation
The struggles that ghetto youths face
We get a bad reputation
We are judged and looked down upon because of where we come from
But mi nah stop hustle fi d paper
I won't stop working hard to make money
Society nuh ask mi nuh question.
Society doesn't inquire about my situation or what I'm going through
Mi a ask as a ghetto yute
I'm asking as a young person from the ghetto
Please listen my situaton
Please hear me out and understand my circumstances
Mi feel poverty and starvation
I experience extreme financial hardship and a lack of basic necessities
Weh u expect mi fi do
What do you expect me to do in this situation?
Mi waan food pon mi plate like any oda man
I want to have enough food to eat like anyone else
Mi ah hustle and feds jus ah collar man
I work hard to earn money, but the police always hassle me
Mi afi get mi hand nurture fi a set a plan
I need to develop skills and a plan for a better future
So by nex year mi can be a better man
I hope to improve my situation and become a better person next year
Ghetto yute affi wise like soloman
Young people in the ghetto need to be wise like King Solomon
Need a likkle bit a time dem a collar man
I need a little bit of time to work and make money without being harassed by the police
Remand remand from one jail 2 anoda one
I have been moved from one prison to another
Alla mi money gone inna mi lawyer hand
All my money goes to my lawyer
Yuh honour
Your Honour
Den if mi gone a prison
If I go to prison
Ah who a gone care fi mi young son
Who will take care of my child when I'm gone?
Babylon still ah fight ghetto yute
The authorities are still targeting young people from the ghetto
But mi know one day better must come
I believe things will get better one day
From London city to Kingston
From London to Kingston, Jamaica
Ah nuff juvinille get fling dong
Many young people have been thrown into juvenile detention
D system nuh care if we live or die
The system doesn't care if we live or die
Di system a pree me
The system is watching me closely
Dem ah seh mi is a don nuh call me so
They are calling me a gangster and telling others not to associate with me
Tru mi help ghetto yute when all fi now
Despite the fact that I have been helping young people from the ghetto for a while
Why you do dat mr.officer
Why are you doing this, officer?
Why yuh come n search inna mi house ah fah
Why did you search my house for no reason?
Yuh nuh see me wid nuh gun officer
I don't have a gun, officer
Suh why u waan put one pon me for
So why are you trying to frame me?
Lyrics Β© BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: ADIDJA PALMER, LINTON WHITE, MICHAEL FAIRMAN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Vishon J M smith
This song been my ringtone since 2011.. its 2020 now.... damm I didnt even notice all this time pass already
Dreaming Pain
Vybz kartel discovered what YouTube was about from early and started making videos and uploading even with a cellphone just make sure the music was out there and would be preserved #genius
Blessyd A.K.A GazaDiva
Everytime I listen to these songs..I get so MAD, The system hated positive message like this from Kartel as he was the ONLY artist able to reach the GHETTOS..
Adapt or Die
true
ashleigh Russell
Base on what I see, This is so true
Evans Omollo
A very under-estimated comment. Long live the Ticha
Gsmok3 Tv
Blessyd A.K.A GazaDiva real talk
Mark Lincoln
Blessyd A.K.A GazaDiva song up
Adrean McCarthy
Vybz kartel will never be missed, his music will always be with us, with much relevance. Listening to his hit in 2022
Delon Thomas
The deepest message for 2020 big respect to shorty palmer