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.
Do Di Maths
Vybz Kartel Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Divide yo leg dem
Add up da f–k yah
Multiply my wood in a yo structure
Seh yo fearless don't fear the a ductor
Herb mi have a roll
Movie actor
Lui V shoes go si tell yo doctor
Backra, massa, some a seh Gully, some a seh Gaza
Smoke high grade low zaza
Portmore mall, yow plaza
Money a the cause a badmind
S–k yo mother yaw sah
Hotter than the tea in a the cup, in a the sasa
()
Mi a watch, dem a watch me
Dem a pree, my skin meck yo think mi a color tv
But mi no tv fi yo view youth
Mi no utibe, wa do you youth?
Wa do you youth, flower wa do you youth?
Wa do you youth, flower wa do you youth?
Wa do you youth, flower wa do you youth?
Yuh a red eye, yuh a bluetooth
(2)
Girl wid no hair look alright
But the tall hair girl hotter than her
When mi si a shine head girl mi seh avatar
Drive pass that in a the Benz
The sound turn up and the AC
High school Calabar
And if a no girl in a it a me one spar
A joke mi a meck star
Me and the tigs dem wi step star
Tell Gleaner… seh wa? A no dem alone meck star
Me meck star as well
Bring dem to the worl
Now a whole heap a money dem a meck star
All a mi youth dem go prep star
(Repeat 2X)
The lyrics in Vybz Kartel's song "Do Di Maths" are sexually explicit and use mathematical equations as euphemisms for sexual acts. The first verse, "Subtraction suh mi do yo panty / Divide yo leg dem / Add up da f–k yah / Multiply my wood in a yo structure," uses subtraction and division to suggest the removal and spreading of clothing, while addition and multiplication refer to sexual intercourse. The second half of the verse, "Seh yo fearless don't fear the a ductor / Herb mi have a roll / Movie actor / Lui V shoes go si tell yo doctor / Teacher yo beat dem bad hi no," implies that the singer is able to perform sexually without hesitation, as well as boasting about their wealth and lifestyle.
The chorus, "Mi a watch, dem a watch me / Dem a pree, my skin meck yo think mi a color tv / But mi no tv fi yo view youth / Mi no utibe, wa do you youth?" suggests that the singer is aware of being scrutinized by others, but ultimately does not care what they think. The following verse, "Girl wid no hair look alright / But the tall hair girl hotter than her / When mi si a shine head girl mi seh avatar / Drive pass that in a the Benz / The sound turn up and the AC / High school Calabar," continues the themes of wealth and status, as well as divided opinions on beauty.
Overall, Vybz Kartel's "Do Di Maths" uses vulgar language and mathematical metaphors to describe sexual acts and lifestyle choices, while emphasizing the singer's confidence and success.
Line by Line Meaning
Subtraction suh mi do yo panty
I will remove your panties
Divide yo leg dem
Open your legs
Add up da f–k yah
Let's have sex
Multiply my wood in a yo structure
I want to have sex with you again and again
Seh yo fearless don't fear the a ductor
Don't be afraid of me, just submit to me
Herb mi have a roll
I have some marijuana
Movie actor
I'm living like a celebrity
Lui V shoes go si tell yo doctor
My expensive shoes are worth showing off
Teacher yo beat dem bad hi no
I'm a talented musician who creates hit songs
Backra, massa, some a seh Gully, some a seh Gaza
There are different opinions and groups about me
Smoke high grade low zaza
I smoke high-quality marijuana
Portmore mall, yow plaza
I shop at expensive malls
Money a the cause a badmind
Jealousy arises due to financial inequalities
S–k yo mother yaw sah
Insulting phrase directed at someone
Hotter than the tea in a the cup, in a the sasa
I'm very attractive and desirable
Mi a watch, dem a watch me
People are watching me but I'm also watching them
Dem a pree, my skin meck yo think mi a color tv
People are jealous of me because I'm attractive with nice skin
But mi no tv fi yo view youth
I'm not here for your entertainment
Mi no utibe, wa do you youth?
I'm not a YouTube channel, why are you watching me?
Wa do you youth, flower wa do you youth?
What's up with you, what do you want?
Yuh a red eye, yuh a bluetooth
You're being nosy and trying to connect with me too much
Girl wid no hair look alright
Women with short or no hair can still be attractive
But the tall hair girl hotter than her
Women with long hair are more attractive to me
When mi si a shine head girl mi seh avatar
I compare bald women to the aliens in the movie Avatar
Drive pass that in a the Benz
I'm driving past any unattractive women in my expensive car
The sound turn up and the AC
I'm listening to loud music and enjoying the air conditioning in my car
High school Calabar
I went to a prestigious high school
And if a no girl in a it a me one spar
If there are no girls around, I'll just hang out with my friends
A joke mi a meck star
I'm funny and like to make jokes
Me and the tigs dem wi step star
My friends and I are living the high life
Tell Gleaner… seh wa? A no dem alone meck star
I'm famous, not just the media outlet, The Gleaner
Me meck star as well
I made myself famous too
Bring dem to the worl
I'm promoting new artists and giving them a platform
Now a whole heap a money dem a meck star
The new artists I'm promoting are also making a lot of money and becoming famous
Contributed by Amelia I. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@jaecapri8544
Pun after pun after pun after pun 😂😂😂 man a genius. Song still bad
@mathi5488
chi chi man:
@suriaraya5805
Do
@Onialove_
Him bad still✊🏾
@user-cd8xy9pv5q
@@Onialove_😊
@carveldarkheart1598
A wonder if people realize seh this song is a masterpiece 😢🎉🎉🎉🎉
@coolie_1_don634
Up n it still bad n can't water down
@mrwisterin
Quarantine brought me back to the GOAT!!!
@dominicmclean6138
🔥🔥🔥🔥
@stephenkiuna5917
we no talk english here😂