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.
certified money boy
Vybz Kartel Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Nuh deh′pon dem long time talking deh bout
"Money a root a evil, and money cause dis, and money cause dat"
A poor people suffer di most and a desso di most evil gwan
Money a di root of good things, weh dem a talk bout?
Poverty mi born and mi crawl out
Mummy get di house weh she ask 'bout
Money, mi love money
Money, mi love money
Money, mi love money
Mi nuh sell soul, mi buy land
Open Benz door, see diamonds and guh get more
Mi born poor, nah dead poor
Yuh mek yuh girl bank it, yuh better mеk sure
Pretty chain just a rub pon mi neckbone
Money cya buy life, dat a real thing
But it mek me life nice, and I'm living
Good things, weh dem a talk bout?
Poverty mi born and mi crawl out
Mummy get di house weh she ask bout
Stand up 'e mountain, mi shout it loud
Money, mi love money
Money, mi love money
Money, mi love money
Paper chase, mi nuh chase nuh paper
Build mi style, build it greater and greater
Money come, fi mi pen and paper
Work hard now and den party later
House and land, square foot and acre
Car and van, tractor and trailer
Mek di dough group up in di baker
Cyah stop now, mah guh link yuh later
Good things, weh dem a talk bout?
Poverty mi born and mi crawl out
Mummy get di house weh she ask bout
Stand up ′e mountain, mi shout it loud
Money, mi love money
Money, mi love money
Money, mi love money
Mi nuh sell soul, mi buy land
Open Benz door, see diamonds and guh get more
Mi born poor, nah dead poor
Pretty chain just a rub pon mi ncekbone
Money cya buy life, dat a real thing
But it mek me life nice, and I′m living
Good things, weh dem a talk bout?
Poverty mi born and mi crawl out
Mummy get di house weh she ask bout
Stand up 'e mountain, mi shout it loud
Money, mi love money
Money, mi love money
Money, mi love money
Paper chase, mi nuh chase nuh paper
Build mi style, build it greater and greater
Money come, fi mi pen and paper
Work hard now and den party later
House and land, square foot and acre
Car and van, tractor and trailer
Mek di dough group up in di baker
Cyah stop now, mah guh link yuh later
Good things, weh dem a talk bout?
Poverty mi born and mi crawl out
Mummy get di house weh she ask bout
Stand up ′pon e mountain, mi shout it loud
Money, mi love money
Money, mi love money
Money, mi love money
Money, mi love money
Money, mi love money
Money, mi love money
In "Certified Money Boy," Vybz Kartel addresses the common phrase "money is the root of all evil" that is frequently used to imply that obtaining financial security and material success comes at the expense of moral integrity. He argues that even though some evils may be associated with money, including fraud and corruption, one could achieve good things such as providing for loved ones and supporting oneself financially, especially if they had faced poverty growing up. He recalls struggling with poverty during his childhood and being driven to work hard to provide a better life for himself and his family. For example, he worked hard to buy land, earn enough to buy his dream car and other luxuries like diamonds. While he acknowledges that money cannot buy life, he enjoys the sense of financial security, and he feels like his life is nice because of his abundance.
Throughout the song, Kartel emphasizes that it is wrong to associate money with pure evil, noting that people who come from financial struggles know the real value of money and the importance of working hard to acquire it. He also stresses that he doesn't compromise his values for an abundance of cash, and he prefers to acquire assets like land rather than selling his soul for money.
In summary, the lyrics of "Certified Money Boy" by Vybz Kartel are a reflection of the artist's perspective on money and its impact on individuals' lives. It emphasizes the potential for good that money brings and how poverty spurs one's drive to work hard towards financial security. Additionally, Kartel stresses the importance of not compromising one's values for money and choosing to acquire assets over selling one's soul.
Line by Line Meaning
Yow JB
Hey JB
Nuh deh'pon dem long time talking deh bout
"Money a root a evil, and money cause dis, and money cause dat"
A poor people suffer di most and a desso di most evil gwan
People have been talking for a long time about how money is the root of evil and causes various problems. But the truth is that the most suffering happens to poor people, and that's where the actual evil lies.
Money a di root of good things, weh dem a talk bout?
Poverty mi born and mi crawl out
Mummy get di house weh she ask 'bout
Stand up 'e mountain, mi shout it loud
Money, mi love money
Money, mi love money
Money, mi love money
Money is the root of good things that people talk about. I was born in poverty but I crawled out of it. My mother finally got the house she always wanted. I stand on top of the mountain and shout about how much I love money. Money makes my life better.
Mi nuh sell soul, mi buy land
Open Benz door, see diamonds and guh get more
Mi born poor, nah dead poor
Yuh mek yuh girl bank it, yuh better mek sure
Pretty chain just a rub pon mi neckbone
Money cya buy life, dat a real thing
But it mek me life nice, and I'm living
I do not sell my soul, but I invest in buying land. When I open the door of my Benz, I see diamonds and want to get more. I was born poor but I refuse to die poor. If you have your girl save money in the bank, make sure it's secure. I have a pretty chain that rubs against my neck, but I know that money can't buy life. However, money has made my life nice and I'm enjoying it.
Paper chase, mi nuh chase nuh paper
Build mi style, build it greater and greater
Money come, fi mi pen and paper
Work hard now and den party later
House and land, square foot and acre
Car and van, tractor and trailer
Mek di dough group up in di baker
Cyah stop now, mah guh link yuh later
I'm on a paper chase, but I'm not just chasing after money. I'm building my style and making it greater and greater. Money comes to me through my pen and paper. I work hard now so that I can party later. I own a house and land, measured in square feet and acres. I have a car and a van, as well as a tractor and a trailer. I'm making my dough rise like bread dough in a baker. I can't stop now, but I'll link you later.
Money, mi love money
Money, mi love money
Money, mi love money
I love money, I love money, I love money.
Writer(s): Unknown Writer, Adidja Azim Palmer
Contributed by Maria V. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@akamentertainment
🔥🔥🔥
@kardo4life
Worl Boss Govern the Globe 🔥🔥🔥
@vybzkartelisagenre5419
The greatest DJ ever .....money is the root of good things
@steppacity2335
https://youtu.be/3SzNUVbaFyw
You will thank me later
@becausehecares4798
Jesus Christ is Lord and He is coming soon. Dont take that vaccine.
@becausehecares4798
No. Its not
@ttautogarages
@@becausehecares4798 yes it is.. Only Badmind. People nuh know that
@bobbyrichentertainment
https://youtu.be/_HOxjgmyl7A
@aaronsmapinga.8567
Ooh my goodness !!!! Vybez kartel is really the dancehall king🤴 ...Behind bars and still tops the billboards...Kenyan love for the King!!
@Malakai869
People don’t understand how powerful this song is. It’s literally an affirmation u zeet. Subconsciously they made a lot of us believe that money itself is evil and usually it manifests into sufferation. Words a powerful.This is why we make music 🎵