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.
Dem Bwoy
Vybz Kartel Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Dem know wi never loose in a war
Because is always the winning formula wi stick wid yeh
Ask Capti wi guns dem tall
An dem trapted
A couldnโฒt we dem bwoy deh a pree
When dem a just a step from off a di war tree
Dem play 3 from dem try pree my war cyan green or cool like tea
Dem a bad man a yard an big fraud abroad
But bad in a dem house but a punk out a road
Dem a chink in a board soaprapa episode
Man a gangster from man a war wid stone an board an clothe an swords
Dem a bad man a yard an big fraud abroad
Bad in a dem house but a punk out a road
Dem a chink in a board soaprapa episode
Man a gangster from man a war wid stone an board an grabbas an swords
Dem just bad pon dem corner dem corner
Dem naw cut a fly no lizard no iguana
Dem gone a police fi di least likkle beeps
So dem bwoy dem a supn wa mi call a informer
Dem cyan even think fi go test mister Palmer
Wi arms like a dam full a corns a no former
So gwaan a yo yard go bad up yo baby mother
Yo test an get hill like nanny-ville mi bring di drama
Di ford like a clover send dem to Jehovah
Mi go over di church dem a berry a hanover
Push over di coffin by the hearse it's run over
Mi donate di soap an mi colder than October
Wi grow like di bolder wid K cross mi shoulder
Like solder mi glad yo yuh naw live no older
Wi left bwoy hanging like a cave wid decoder
In this song, Vybz Kartel is discussing his dominance in the street wars, telling his enemies that they can never defeat him because he always sticks to the winning formula. A key component of this winning formula is his powerful and tall guns, which he and his crew, including Capti, always have with them, ready for any battle. He makes it clear that these so-called bad men are not a threat to him, as they only pretend to be tough when it comes to women or other small things, but when it comes to real war, they cannot handle it.
Vybz Kartel is mocking these "bad men" who are only tough in their own yard but cannot manage to be strong outside of it. He calls them chinks in the board, meaning they are weak spots that can be easily taken advantage of. The informer culture doesn't scare him either, as he is sure that they will not betray him, and if anyone tries to test him, they will suffer the consequences.
Overall, the song is a statement of power and authority that Vybz Kartel holds in the street wars, and he sends a message to his enemies that they should not mess with him.
Line by Line Meaning
Yow liquid
Hey buddy
Dem know wi never loose in a war
They know we never lose in a war
Because is always the winning formula wi stick wid yeh
Because we stick with the winning formula
Ask Capti wi guns dem tall
Ask Capti, our guns are big
An dem trapted
And they are afraid
A couldnโฒt we dem bwoy deh a pree
It couldn't be us those boys are watching
When dem a just a step from off a di war tree
When they are just one step away from the battlefield
Dem a bad man fi woman dem no bad bwoy fi we
They may be tough on women but not on us
Dem play 3 from dem try pree my war cyan green or cool like tea
They tested me three times and now they know my war is intense
Dem a bad man a yard an big fraud abroad
They act like bad boys at home but they are big frauds elsewhere
But bad in a dem house but a punk out a road
They may be bad at home but they are just weaklings outside
Dem a chink in a board soaprapa episode
They are vulnerable and easily broken like a cracked board in a movie
Man a gangster from man a war wid stone an board an clothe an swords
I am a real gangster fighting with weapons like stones, boards, clothes, and swords
Dem cyan even think fi go test mister Palmer
They can't even think of testing Mr. Palmer
Wi arms like a dam full a corns a no former
Our arms are strong and muscular, and not just for show
So gwaan a yo yard go bad up yo baby mother
You should go home and cause trouble for your baby's mother instead
Yo test an get hill like nanny-ville mi bring di drama
If you test me, you'll end up in big trouble like Nannyville, I bring the drama
Di ford like a clover send dem to Jehovah
My bullet is like a four-leaf clover sending them to God
Mi go over di church dem a berry a hanover
I pass by the church where they are burying people in Hanover
Push over di coffin by the hearse it's run over
I push over the coffin as the hearse runs over it
Mi donate di soap an mi colder than October
I donate soap and I am colder than October
Wi grow like di bolder wid K cross mi shoulder
We grow like boulders with K cross on our shoulders
Like solder mi glad yo yuh naw live no older
Like a soldier, I am happy you won't live any older
Wi left bwoy hanging like a cave wid decoder
We leave boys hanging like a cave with a decoder
Writer(s): Kunley Mccarthy, Garth Mcdonald, Andre Gray, Lloyd James
Contributed by Gabriel M. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@turbofoot30
Vybz Kartel is the greatest lyricist of all time, not even alkablind nor Movado have this amount of venom and lyrics .
@mrcolemans4504
Stop tell lie ๐
@007MRnicholas
Legendary war tunes of old boi. 08 was the prime of dancehall
@nycg801
๐ฏ๐ฏ๐ฏ
@souflotv
im not kiling no body , this song is like a movie , when im in my warrior mind frame riding on the highway with all the windows down and the volume up , bass just a tump an addi a hangle di riddim wicked , ruff it up ruff it up , beat up di bombo claat riddim like bounty killa seh
@mephisto256
+SouFLoTV @ Youtube I agree! This that shit you and ya crew need to listen to when yall spot them bustas who was talking shit earlier, and you pull up on them, hop out the car and just start beating EVERYBODIES ASS!!! #FreeWorldBoss #RealGazaBadman
@marromorrison
Still listening in 2018 bredda ๐ฅ๐ฅ๐ฅ๐ฅ.
@DanielMorales-ng2lw
Bloodclat facts him ah talkkk
@hectsanchez3844
If a shoot-out, me beating it back ๐๐ซก
@mrcolemans4504
Sou Flow tv u Fock man ๐ take kartel diicckkk out your mouth Smfh ๐