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.
Versitility
Vybz Kartel Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Mi nah watch yuh boyfriend
So it was in the beginning
So it be in the end
A mi first tek weh yuh innocence
First night at di rampin' shop
Yuh bawl out from di love yuh feel
Yuh still contain yuh innocence
But di shy ting stop
Yuh still confess yuh love to me
[Verse 1:]
Baby...
Memba di first touch
Memba di first time yuh have a crush
Yuh love mi so much, it buck and it stuck
But still first love off di deepest cut
Memba di first dollyhouse weh we act
Yuh tell mi yuh madda a go beat yuh fi dat
Two day later me see yuh come back
Fi spend a five minutes everytime yuh go shop
Baby...
Two weeks run off
Maturity tek over yuh body
Bawlin' stop
Yuh tun' professional
Mi give yuh di good love already
Yuh want it back
Yuh a hunt mi yaad
Everyday, yuh deh a Big Yard
Rampin' shop
True yuh can't figet, di man weh tek away...
[Chorus:]
Mi tek weh yuh versatility...
Mi tek weh yuh versatility...
Mi tek weh yuh versatility...
Mi tek weh yuh versatility...
So sing for me...
Yeah yeah yeah... you took my...
Yeah yeah yeah... you took my...
Yeah yeah yeah... you took my...
Yeah yeah yeah...
[Verse 2:]
Inna my first neighbourhood
Di time did hard, but di vibes did good
A tug o' war love mi a push, him a shub
Di love a rise higher than fowl inna coob
Now yuh waan see mi every single second
Me have white liver cau' me a indian
no matter who a waan seh dem a yuh husband
Teacha mi memba cau' you a mi first one
[Repeat Chorus:]
[Repeat Verse 1:]
[Repeat Chorus:]
In the intro of Vybz Kartel's song "Versatility," the artiste starts by saying he isn't interested in a woman's boyfriend because he took her innocence from her. The woman bawled out in pleasure when they had sex the first time, but since then, she has stopped being shy and has been confessing her love to Kartel. The first verse delves more into their relationship, and Kartel asks the woman to remember their first touch and first dollyhouse. He explains how they couldn't stay away from each other and would meet up every day, and with time, the woman became more mature and professional, but she still wanted him.
In the second verse, Kartel takes us to his old neighbourhood where the love he had with this woman was hard but good. He compares their love to a tug o' war where they both pushed and shoved but loved each other deeply. The woman now wants to see him every second of the day, but he can't always be there because he has other commitments. However, he remembers her and their love because she was his first, and that will never change. The chorus repeats four times, emphasizing how he took her versatility, and he tells her to sing for him.
Line by Line Meaning
Mi nah watch yuh boyfriend
I am not interested in your boyfriend
So it was in the beginning
This has been the case since the start of our relationship
So it be in the end
It will be the same until the end of our relationship
A mi first tek weh yuh innocence
I took away your innocence, I was your first
First night at di rampin' shop
Our first night together at the dancehall
Yuh bawl out from di love yuh feel
You cried out from the love you felt
As di rampin' start it stop
As the music started, our physical contact stopped
Yuh still contain yuh innocence
You still had your innocence despite our encounter
But di shy ting stop
Your shyness disappeared
Yuh still confess yuh love to me
You still professed your love for me
Memba di first touch
Remember our first physical touch
Memba di first time yuh have a crush
Remember when you first fell in love with me
Yuh love mi so much, it buck and it stuck
Your love for me was so strong, it was unbreakable
But still first love off di deepest cut
However, the pain of our first love was the most intense
Memba di first dollyhouse weh we act
Remember when we played house together
Yuh tell mi yuh madda a go beat yuh fi dat
You told me that your mother would punish you for our pretend game
Two day later me see yuh come back
Two days later, I saw that you returned
Fi spend a five minutes everytime yuh go shop
To spend five minutes with me every time you went to the store
Two weeks run off
Two weeks passed by
Maturity tek over yuh body
Maturity took over your body
Bawlin' stop
You stopped crying
Yuh tun' professional
You became more experienced
Mi give yuh di good love already
I had already given you good love
Yuh want it back
You wanted it back
Yuh a hunt mi yaad
You were looking for me at my house
Everyday, yuh deh a Big Yard
Every day, you were at the dancehall
Rampin' shop
Dancehall
True yuh can't figet, di man weh tek away...
You can't forget the man who took your innocence
Inna my first neighbourhood
In my old neighborhood
Di time did hard, but di vibes did good
Times were tough, but the mood was good
A tug o' war love mi a push, him a shub
We were playing a game of push and pull with our love
Di love a rise higher than fowl inna coob
Our love rose higher than a chicken in a coop
Now yuh waan see mi every single second
Now you want to see me every moment
Me have white liver cau' me a indian
I have a weak liver because I am Indian
no matter who a waan seh dem a yuh husband
No matter who claims to be your husband
Teacha mi memba cau' you a mi first one
Teach me to remember that you were my first love
Yeah yeah yeah... you took my...
You took my versatility
Writer(s): Tarik Johnston, Adidja Palmer
Contributed by Carter M. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Ronaldo Ghany
Mi nah watch yuh boyfriend
So it was in the beginning
So it be in the end
A mi first tek weh yuh innocence
First night at di rampin' shop
Yuh bawl out from di love yuh feel
As di rampin' start it stop
Yuh still contain yuh innocence
But di shy ting stop
Yuh still confess yuh love to me
Baby...
Memba di first touch
Memba di first time yuh have a crush
Yuh love mi so much, it buck and it stuck
But still first love off di deepest cut
Memba di first dollyhouse weh we act
Yuh tell mi yuh madda a go beat yuh fi dat
Two day later me see yuh come back
Fi spend a five minutes everytime yuh go shop
Baby...
Two weeks run off
Maturity tek over yuh body
Bawlin' stop
Yuh tun' professional
Mi give yuh di good love already
Yuh want it back
Yuh a hunt mi yaad
Everyday, yuh deh a Big Yard
Rampin' shop
True yuh can't figet, di man weh tek away...
Mi tek weh yuh versatility...
Mi tek weh yuh versatility...
Mi tek weh yuh versatility...
Mi tek weh yuh versatility...
So sing for me...
Yeah yeah yeah... you took my...
Yeah yeah yeah... you took my...
Yeah yeah yeah... you took my...
Yeah yeah yeah...
Inna my first neighbourhood
Di time did hard, but di vibes did good
A tug o' war love mi a push, him a shub
Di love a rise higher than fowl inna coob
Now yuh waan see mi every single second
Me have white liver cau' me a indian
No matter who a waan seh dem a yuh husband
Teacha mi memba cau' you a mi first one
Mi nah watch yuh boyfriend
So it was in the beginning
So it be in the end
A mi first tek weh yuh innocence
First night at di rampin' shop
Yuh bawl out from di love yuh feel
As di rampin' start it stop
Yuh still contain yuh innocence
But di shy ting stop
Yuh still confess yuh love to me
Baby...
Memba di first touch
Memba di first time yuh have a crush
Yuh love mi so much, it buck and it stuck
But still first love off di deepest cut
Memba di first dollyhouse weh we act
Yuh tell mi yuh madda a go beat yuh fi dat
Two day later me see yuh come back
Fi spend a five minutes everytime yuh go shop
Baby...
Two weeks run off
Maturity tek over yuh body
Bawlin' stop
Yuh tun' professional
Mi give yuh di good love already
Yuh want it back
Yuh a hunt mi yaad
Everyday, yuh deh a Big Yard
Rampin' shop
True yuh can't figet, di man weh tek away...
Mi tek weh yuh versatility...
Mi tek weh yuh versatility...
Mi tek weh yuh versatility...
Mi tek weh yuh versatility...
So sing for me...
Yeah yeah yeah... you took my...
Yeah yeah yeah... you took my...
Yeah yeah yeah... you took my...
Yeah yeah yeah...
Inna my first neighbourhood
Di time did hard, but di vibes did good
A tug o' war love mi a push, him a shub
Di love a rise higher than fowl inna coob
Now yuh waan see mi every single second
Me have white liver cau' me a indian
No matter who a waan seh dem a yuh husband
Teacha mi memba cau' you a mi first one
Ronaldo Ghany
Mi nah watch yuh boyfriend
So it was in the beginning
So it be in the end
A mi first tek weh yuh innocence
First night at di rampin' shop
Yuh bawl out from di love yuh feel
As di rampin' start it stop
Yuh still contain yuh innocence
But di shy ting stop
Yuh still confess yuh love to me
Baby...
Memba di first touch
Memba di first time yuh have a crush
Yuh love mi so much, it buck and it stuck
But still first love off di deepest cut
Memba di first dollyhouse weh we act
Yuh tell mi yuh madda a go beat yuh fi dat
Two day later me see yuh come back
Fi spend a five minutes everytime yuh go shop
Baby...
Two weeks run off
Maturity tek over yuh body
Bawlin' stop
Yuh tun' professional
Mi give yuh di good love already
Yuh want it back
Yuh a hunt mi yaad
Everyday, yuh deh a Big Yard
Rampin' shop
True yuh can't figet, di man weh tek away...
Mi tek weh yuh versatility...
Mi tek weh yuh versatility...
Mi tek weh yuh versatility...
Mi tek weh yuh versatility...
So sing for me...
Yeah yeah yeah... you took my...
Yeah yeah yeah... you took my...
Yeah yeah yeah... you took my...
Yeah yeah yeah...
Inna my first neighbourhood
Di time did hard, but di vibes did good
A tug o' war love mi a push, him a shub
Di love a rise higher than fowl inna coob
Now yuh waan see mi every single second
Me have white liver cau' me a indian
No matter who a waan seh dem a yuh husband
Teacha mi memba cau' you a mi first one
Mi nah watch yuh boyfriend
So it was in the beginning
So it be in the end
A mi first tek weh yuh innocence
First night at di rampin' shop
Yuh bawl out from di love yuh feel
As di rampin' start it stop
Yuh still contain yuh innocence
But di shy ting stop
Yuh still confess yuh love to me
Baby...
Memba di first touch
Memba di first time yuh have a crush
Yuh love mi so much, it buck and it stuck
But still first love off di deepest cut
Memba di first dollyhouse weh we act
Yuh tell mi yuh madda a go beat yuh fi dat
Two day later me see yuh come back
Fi spend a five minutes everytime yuh go shop
Baby...
Two weeks run off
Maturity tek over yuh body
Bawlin' stop
Yuh tun' professional
Mi give yuh di good love already
Yuh want it back
Yuh a hunt mi yaad
Everyday, yuh deh a Big Yard
Rampin' shop
True yuh can't figet, di man weh tek away...
Mi tek weh yuh versatility...
Mi tek weh yuh versatility...
Mi tek weh yuh versatility...
Mi tek weh yuh versatility...
So sing for me...
Yeah yeah yeah... you took my...
Yeah yeah yeah... you took my...
Yeah yeah yeah... you took my...
Yeah yeah yeah...
Inna my first neighbourhood
Di time did hard, but di vibes did good
A tug o' war love mi a push, him a shub
Di love a rise higher than fowl inna coob
Now yuh waan see mi every single second
Me have white liver cau' me a indian
No matter who a waan seh dem a yuh husband
Teacha mi memba cau' you a mi first one
zac morris
2019 , I heard this while in a California party ... Nice song
Mendo Stylee
ten years late
Miss Marley
…much prefer it when things are left to the imagination. Thank you for the clean version 🙏🏼💚💛♥️
ᴍᴊᴀʏ2ᴄʀᴀᴄᴋ🇧🇷
🔥🔥🔥🔥 favourite artist
Naomi Richmond
Everytime I hear this song I have to laugh
K Lapierre
sweet tune
Vinco Andretti
you get the good love already
Ras Lion
great riddim
Nayan Singh
Free Shawn Strom and world boss Gaza for ever hard ball love from Guyana free Shawn Strom and world boss Gaza for ever