Vybz Kartel—
A family member, who reportedly has a front-row seat in Vybz Kartel’s life, is penning a book about the lyrical genius.
Michael Dawson, co-author of Vybz Kartel’s first book, The Voice of the Jamaican Ghetto, told THE STAR that the book is in the making, but declined to name the storyteller.
“It is a very intimate family portrayal because they want people to hear stories from them about the man the world came to know as Vybz Kartel, and how his journey, the good and bad, affected them,” Dawson told THE STAR.
Kartel, 44, whose given name is Adidja Palmer, is currently serving a life sentence for murder. He has appealed his conviction and the case is set to go before the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council for a ruling. Despite spending the last 10 years behind bars, his lock-up has had minimal impact on his ability to dominate the dancehall space that he has ruled for the better part of two decades.
Dawson said that the new book about Kartel, due to be released next year, would offer insight into the man behind the music and how his family viewed media portrayals of him.
MISINFORMATION
“That is one of the main reasons why the family member decided to do this book. It was just too much misinformation out there about their family member and they want to clear some things up,” he said.
Dawson said the book is important because “despite what the system says, his story is inspiring”.
“This is somebody that rose from regular life to stardom and in the midst of his rise to fame, he never sold out. He was still Gaza, he was still deeply rooted in Portmore. He never forgot where he came from, never shifted and that is the core of who Adidja Palmer is,” he said. “No matter how far he got in life, he was still the same and I get tons of letters still, from youths all over the world about how he inspired them.”
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