Boomshots

Tag: King of the Dancehall

  • Vybz Kartel Tops the Charts & Claims His Crown on “King of the Dancehall”

    Vybz Kartel Tops the Charts & Claims His Crown on “King of the Dancehall”

    The World Boss Backs Up The Big Chat

    “So all my time just gone?” Vybz Kartel intones at the start of the tenth track on his thirteenth album, King of the Dancehall. “All these years—them waste it. If me rob every watch inna the jewelry store, me can’t get back the time.” This is the closest Adidja Palmer comes to addressing the five years (and counting) that he’s spent behind bars on his new album King of the Dancehall, which debuted at No. 1 on the iTunes Reggae chart today. Then again, he hasn’t exactly wasted his time. The album, produced by TJ Records, is a powerful piece of work, displaying all aspects of Kartel’s artistry and backing up its bold titular boast. While Beenie Man, the last Jamaican superstar to claim the title of dancehall king, has expressed his doubts about Kartel snatching the crown, Bounty Killer—who had a serious falling out with his former protege—recently appeared OnStage and weighed in on the musical game of thrones, openly admitting that 1) the album title is obviously designed to provoke Beenie Man and 2) there is no denying that Kartel is this generation’s dancehall king.   Review Continues After The Jump… (more…)

  • Reasoning with Beenie Man: “The music is Jamaican; the problem is, America can make it too.”

    Reasoning with Beenie Man: “The music is Jamaican; the problem is, America can make it too.”

    The Doctor Talks Drake, Popcaan & Kartel

    “Drake from Canada—Beenie Man from Jamaica—dah one yah a murda! Zagga.” When Drake’s album Views dropped at the end of April, Popcaan fans were surprised to hear a new voice on “Controlla”—a vintage Beenie Man sample appeared where Popcaan’s lyrics used to be. With Drake’s album topping the charts and breaking sales records this was obviously a big deal, and it set off all sorts of debates about why the 6 God made that move—and whether he truly respected reggae and dancehall or was just tapping into the flavor of the moment. But Beenie Man is not bothered. Having collabed with the likes of Wyclef and Janet Jackson the Grammy-winning DJ who dropped the single “King of the Dancehall” back in 2004 is taking the whole situation in stride and focusing on his new album Unstoppable, which features collabs with Sean Paul and Busta Rhymes among others. We caught up with Beenie near the end of his European tour to talk about Drake, Popcaan and his thoughts about Vybz Kartel’s new album title. (In case you missed the memo, Kartel’s dropping an album tomorrow provocatively titled King of the Dancehall.) “The name of an album and the name of a person different,” said Bounty Killer during a recent appearance On Stage. “But me know say it provoking still. Him provoke Beenie fe true, just like when Beenie Man say him ah de king, him did provoke Yellow Man. And tell you what: is not one king. You have the king of all kings, but there are several kings. Kings come down different generations. So I guess Kartel is trying to say that him ah the king of this generation.” Pressed on the point Killer admitted that his former protege Kartel (who he’s definitely had some issues with over the years) is now ruling the dancehal. “He is the king of this generation, you can’t deny that. Weh you ah go do, fight it? For the last ten years, ah him. Me can’t say nuttin’—him ah de young king deh. If him wan’ piece of the king ting—him can hold on pon the young king. He’s not no prince anymore, after a decade. I’m not being biased. Him a young king, mon.” Let’s see what Beenie has to say about that. Interview After The Jump… (more…)