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.
Free Style
Vybz Kartel Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Yuh nuh knw a me response fi dis
And wi affi dead before some bwoy get bail
The gyal dem seh mi sweet
Yea the snickers type
Plus dem seh mi sharp like scissors point
Ladies when mi dress everything is new
But if you waah something old
Watch Nick at night
Yeah
Me to the music weh sweet n nice
Is like Sunday to the chicken is peas & rice
When me hear some punk waah be deejay
Me get cross like the thing weh kill Jesus Christ
Dem jus a mek up all sorta noise
But the music weh me do is authorize
Fi get the girls inna trance
Yea hypnotize
And gyrate dem waist
Hm mm hmm it surprise
So when yuh call mi name
A dancehall yuh call
Mi got the thugs dem a party from wall to wall
Mi drink street vybz rum but mi sober now
Mi flow 16 bars..nuh alcohol
Yah hear me
Put yuh hand inna the air if yuh like
Kartel freestyle mi nuh write it
And if yuh doe like it come bite it
Ha ha ha awoh
Yah hear me
Put yuh hand inna the air if yuh like
Kartel freestyle mi nuh write it
And if yuh doe like it come bite it
Ha ha ha awoh
Addi di teacha
Professional words a swing
Stay far when the nouns and verbs a fling
Lyrically, this is a murder ting
But have it your way like burger king
Six million ways to die, choose one
Six million tunes a day, new songs
Yuh waah mi kill yuh life pon stage wid a track
Or yuh aguh wait till the album drop
Dem seh mi stop deejay and sing
So wah
But the gyal dem love when mi sing
So wah
All your gyal love to king
For wah
But inna love mi nuh fall
Mi nuh twin tower
So when yuh call mi name
A dancehall yuh call
Mi got the thugs dem a party from wall to wall
Mi drink street vybz rum but mi sober now
Mi flow 16 bars..nuh alcohol
Yah hear me
Put yuh hand inna the air if yuh like
Kartel freestyle mi nuh write it
And if yuh doe like it come bite it
Ha ha ha awoh
Yah hear me
Put yuh hand inna the air if yuh like
Kartel freestyle mi nuh write it
And if yuh doe like it come bite it
Ha ha ha awoh
Teacha yuh lyrics contagious
So dem mus spread
Like virus
Dat mi jus seh
Mi a action
Stalone Dutchred
Dem a cartoon
Beevus Butthead
Mi nuh Family Guy
Mi nuh american dad
Mi flow mek yardy and american glad
Wher yuh see di gaza
Yuh see a bag a star
Similar to wah inna the american flag
Popcaan mek it out and him pass worse
Anno sweety but a starburst
Andrew mirey
Copy and paste the four lines from the last verse
So when yuh call mi name
A dancehall yuh call
Mi got the thugs dem a party from wall to wall
Mi drink street vybz rum but mi sober now
Mi flow 16 bars..nuh alcohol
Yah hear me
Put yuh hand inna the air if yuh like
Kartel freestyle mi nuh write it
And if yuh doe like it come bite it
Ha ha ha awoh
Yah hear me
Put yuh hand inna the air if yuh like
Kartel freestyle mi nuh write it
And if yuh doe like it come bite it
Ha ha ha awoh
Come bi bi bi bite it and if yuh dont like it come bite it
The lyrics to Vybz Kartel's song "Free Style" display his confidence and expertise as a dancehall artist. The opening lines establish his responsibility for his own actions and his willingness to stand up for himself. Throughout the song, he talks about his attraction to women and his ability to mesmerize them with his music. He also touches on the negativity he sees in the music industry, particularly towards those who try to become deejays but are not authentic or authorized. Kartel emphasizes his dedication to his craft and his talent for creating music that draws people in and moves them.
One of the most significant themes in "Free Style" is Kartel's effortless mastery of his craft, demonstrated by his ability to freestyle and not write down his rhymes. He speaks directly to his audience and commands them to raise their hands if they like what they are hearing. This demonstrates his confidence in his ability to entertain and his control over the crowd's energy. He takes pride in his status as a master of his art and subtly dismisses those who try to copy his style or criticize him. The lyrics in this song prove that Vybz Kartel is a force to be reckoned with in the dancehall scene, and his fans cannot get enough of his music.
Line by Line Meaning
Yo Jeffery hype dawdie,
Hey Jeffery, don't get too excited, you know that I'm the one responsible for this
Yuh nuh knw a me response fi dis
You don't know that I'm the one who's accountable for this situation
And wi affi dead before some bwoy get bail
And we have to die before some guys get bail
The gyal dem seh mi sweet
The girls say that I'm charming
Yea the snickers type
Yeah, the snicker candy bar type
Plus dem seh mi sharp like scissors point
They also say that I'm sharp like the point of scissors
Ladies when mi dress everything is new
Whenever I dress up, everything is brand new
But if you waah something old
But if you want something old
Watch Nick at night
Watch reruns of old TV shows late at night
When me hear some punk waah be deejay
When I hear some punk who wants to be a DJ
Me get cross like the thing weh kill Jesus Christ
I get angry like the ones who crucified Jesus Christ
Dem jus a mek up all sorta noise
They're just making all sorts of noise
But the music weh me do is authorize
But the music that I make is authorized
Fi get the girls inna trance
To hypnotize the girls
Yea hypnotize
Yes, hypnotize
And gyrate dem waist
And make them move their waist
Hm mm hmm it surprise
Hmm, it's surprising
So when yuh call mi name
So when you call my name
A dancehall yuh call
You're referring to the dancehall
Mi got the thugs dem a party from wall to wall
I have the thugs partying all over the place
Mi drink street vybz rum but mi sober now
I used to drink street vibes rum, but now I'm sober
Mi flow 16 bars..nuh alcohol
I can flow for 16 bars without alcohol
Put yuh hand inna the air if yuh like
Put your hands up if you like it
Kartel freestyle mi nuh write it
I don't write my freestyles, they come naturally
And if yuh doe like it come bite it
And if you don't like it, come bite it
Teacha yuh lyrics contagious
My lyrics as a teacher are contagious
So dem mus spread
So they must spread
Like virus
Like a virus
Dat mi jus seh
That's what I'm saying
Mi a action
I'm a man of action
Stalone Dutchred
I'm like Stallone in Dutch
Dem a cartoon
They're like cartoons
Beevus Butthead
Like Beavis and Butt-Head
Mi nuh Family Guy
I'm not like Family Guy
Mi nuh american dad
I'm not like American Dad
Mi flow mek yardy and american glad
My flow makes Jamaicans and Americans happy
Wher yuh see di gaza
Where you see the Gaza
Yuh see a bag a star
You see a lot of stars
Similar to wah inna the american flag
Similar to what's in the American flag
Popcaan mek it out and him pass worse
Popcaan made it out and he's doing worse
Anno sweety but a starburst
It's not sweet, but it's a starburst
Andrew mirey
Andrew funeral
Copy and paste the four lines from the last verse
Repeat the four lines from the previous verse
Come bi bi bi bite it and if yuh dont like it come bite it
Come and bite it, and if you don't like it, come and bite it anyway
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: Adidja Palmer, Dwayne Dawkins, Ted Dawkins
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@jamaicalandwelove3448
Andrew Myrie..copy and paste bk the last 4line frm the last verse..
CALL MI NAME A DANCEHALL YUH CALL
MI AVE THE THUG THEM A PARTY FRM WALL TO WALL
MI DRINK STREET VYBZ RUM BUT MI SOBER NOW
MI FLOW 16 BARS, NUH ALCOHOL...
BADDEST FREE STYLE IN EVERY GENRE OF MUSIC ON THIS PLANET...WORDS CAN'T DESCRIBE THIS MAN'S TALENT
#FREEWORLDBOSS
#GREATEST
@user-zs1jr4pw9c
Who's here 2024?🇯🇲🇯🇲✌🏿✌🏿
@JuggernautProductions
This audio is one of the most perfectly produced record I have ever heard. The balance of the beat and vocal is absolutely perfect. Perfectly mastered. Listen with a good headphone if you don’t believe me.
@smoke758
this song will never get old for me
@destinesdistribution9492
Ian Williams, Me too!
@aceimpmaxx8986
2020 n still bad yf like a fuss mi a hear
@romariomeikle6350
Me too
@courtneyallen-pm7lv
I bet
@samoyslew6880
when i was younger i loved this, but i didn’t know what a freestyle was so now i’m definitely able to appreciate this. one of the greatest lyricist ever ❤
@animeotaku2123
He is the best he is just dropping lyrics that's one thing no dancehall artist can do
@MrGreg-lj5wk
Who still a listen this ina 2020 it bad same way kartel yah g nah lie