Kartel was freed by a Jamaican appeals court at the end of July last year after 13 years, walking free on a technicality with several other co-defendants.
If entry visas are granted to him and his entourage, he is about to embark on a multination redemption tour that would include several Caribbean destinations, Canada, and the U
As an example of his star power now, thousands of Jamaican and other fans worldwide had flown in for the event. Many came on the dozens of private jets parked at local airports, while others hopped on commercial airplanes and headed to the national stadium.
Promoters reported that hotels were fully booked, while taxi operators, food vendors, beverage dealers, and others profited by capitalizing on Kartel, whose real name is Adidja Palmer.
An example of government involvement in bringing Kartel to local shores to boost the economy is the administration of Premier Natalio Wheatley in The British Virgin Islands (BVI) is controversially giving $220,000 as a grant to help a local promoter bring the superstar for a near sold out concert in Tortola in mid-March. Defending his position against stinging criticism even from his former deputy Lorna Smith, Wheatley says it is a worthwhile investment that will redound financially.
Smith clarified that “I do not support it, and I have no problem in saying so. I hope that it can be nipped in the bud in terms of government support,” local media quoted her as saying when the idea was first floated late last year. Smith has since been fired as deputy premier.
So far, concerts are lined up for the Trinidad carnival late next month: one in the Bahamas in March, the second in the BVI, another in the Bahamas at the end of March, and an already sold-out performance over the Easter weekend in Barbados in late April after these comes to an independence anniversary concert in Guyana in late May and the St. Kitts Music Festival in early June.
His camp says he is awaiting the American Embassy in Jamaica’s decision on whether he will be allowed to travel there, even as preparations are being made for a performance at the Caribana weekend in July.
Tickets for every planned concert are proverbially through the roof, with Jamaican prices ranging from $125 for the cheapest seats to $10,000 for premium boxes. VVIP boxes in Guyana are being offered at $2,000, a fortune in the country where the American dollar trades at around $215-$1.
Vybz Kartel said he had feared dying from an immune disease in prison as he remains grateful to the local appeals court and the British Privy Council for hearing his appeal, eventually ordering his release.
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