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Miami Herald
22-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Miami Herald
Miami's Best of the Best marks the return of dancehall as big artists get U.S. visas
Dancehall artist Vybz Kartel had just made history as the first Caribbean artist to sell out New York's Barclays Center two nights in a row after stepping onto a U.S. stage for the first time in two decades, when the co-host of The Breakfast Club asked the question many had been asking for years: What happened to dancehall? 'The late '90s and early 2000s, dancehall was crazy,' DJ Envy said during the live studio interview. 'Seems like it's slowed down a lot. Why do you think that is?' A provocative and personable Kartel didn't miss a beat. 'Because I was in prison, sir,' the artist, born Adidja Palmer, responded to laughter. 'But now I'm out and we're doing stuff.' Kartel's response may have seemed a bit self-aggrandizing — but it isn't far from the truth. For years, dancehall, reggae's rowdier and more aggressive offspring and the leader of a cultural movement, was grounded in Jamaica. Its biggest stars were unable to tour internationally due to U.S. visa denials or prison sentences. Kartel himself spent 13 years behind bars in Jamaica before his murder conviction and life sentence were overturned by London's Privy Council. Buju Banton, another cultural icon, served a seven-year sentence on a drug conspiracy conviction in the United States before being freed in 2018 from a Miami federal prison. In their absence, hip-hop stars wouldn't collaborate, while others tried to mimic the sound, opening themselves up to accusations of cultural appropriation. U.S. radio airplay dwindled, and genres like Reggaeton and Afro Beats moved in to fill the gap. 'How are you going to have a genre where pretty much all of its big artists with catalogs — major stars— cannot travel?' said Orville 'Shaggy,' Burrell, the two-time Grammy Award-winning artist who has garnered multiple Billboard chart hits through his 30-year career. Dancehall's only diamond-selling artist with more than 40 million records sold, Burrell went through a list of entertainers whose disappearance from the U.S. stage throughout the past decade led to the genre losing steam internationally. 'With maybe the exception of me and Sean [Paul], the arm of the genre, to defend and represent it on a global scale, could not move,' he said in a Miami Herald interview. 'That's why you see other genres that are going to go around it and its popularity drop. There is not a plane I know that can fly on one wing. That is a major, major part.' In Miami, the effects were particularly visible. Best of the Best International Music Festival, one of the biggest showcases of Caribbean music, was forced on a two-year hiatus before finally returning this year with its 19th edition and a highly-anticipated performance this Sunday by Buju Banton at downtown's Bayfront Park. In addition to Buju Banton, the line up also features Wayne Wonder, Beres Hammond, Marcia Griffiths, and rising stars like 450 and Chronic Law, showing the genre's generational depth and evolution. For soca music fans, there is Skinny Fabulous. 'After two years of canceling, we're back,' organizer Joey Budafuco said, adding that while the line up includes nine solid acts, they are working on getting more visas. Resurgence of dancehall Both the event's return this Sunday and the presence of artists like Kartel and Buju Banton are signs of artists reclaiming lost ground, fans and musicians say, as U.S. visas are being approved again and U.S. stages are reopening to artists. 'You're starting to see the presence of the culture and the dancehall being in people's faces,' said Burrell, who on Wednesday announced his Island Music Conference, which will take place in Feb. 2026 in Kingston, Jamaica. 'You're having coliseum shows...a lot of these artists may be having a moment and it might be a moment, but it's a moment we're going to accept anyway; it's definitely putting a lot of light and a lot of shine on the genre and we're embracing it.' Burrell isn't alone in his excitement about dancehall's resurgence. 'I thought about this for so many years,' Miami's DJ Khaled told the Herald during Best of the Best's launch. 'You see everybody getting their visas. Thank God, for the music, for the families and for the people to come and be able to travel the world and be able to spread their beautiful message and perform their beautiful songs.' 'The music,' he said, 'is such a timeless thing that you have Best of the Best doing its 19th year.' Khaled had dropped by to show his support for the event and for Buju Banton. One of dancehall's biggest stars who had collaborated with artists such as Busta Rhymes and Fat Joe, Buju Banton's career came to a screeching halt in 2009 when he was arrested in Sarasota and convicted in 2011. His release from prison wasn't just met with a crowd of adoring fans but sold out concerts in the Caribbean. His appearance this Sunday is his first show in South Florida since he performed last August at Ameriant Bank Arena in Fort Lauderdale as part of his 'Overcome Tour.' Unlike Kartel, who has spoken about his difficulties in prison and how he recorded albums on an iPhone 5s during his incarceration, Buju Banton, born Mark Anthony Myrie, shuns such discussions. He prefers to discuss where the music is headed. 'We have created a niche market for ourselves,' not just in the region, he said, recognizing the importance of being able to get the music off the island. 'If we're unable to reach the mainland to spread the word and promulgate the culture we can't grow, the culture won't grow,' he said. 'If there is an opening we need to seize the opening and do not fall asleep because the next generation is going to ask what did you do when you got this opportunity.' Veteran artist Wayne Wonder said visa constraints are not the only challenges dancehall faces. 'Our music is so powerful, the higher powers, they are scared, they are afraid,' he said, referencing his own experience and that of other artists such as Vincentian singer Kevin Lyttle and Barbados' Rupee. American record labels treated them like one-hit artists, the singer, who lives in South Florida said, even as they were gaining fans in the Caribbean and its diaspora. 'They try to limit you,' he said. 'But as I always say, our music always finds a way.' This is why, the Jamaican dancehall artist behind the 2003 hit 'No Letting Go,' says he likes events like Best of the Best and the important role it serves. 'This is a platform where every artist is coming with their best,' said Wayne Wonder, born Von Wayne Charles. 'You have artists with longevity, artists with a catalog, artists with performance, artists with delivery so it's just Best of the Best.' For Budafuco, the return of big name artists to the scene isn't just about staging a show—it's about reclaiming cultural space. Based on ticket sales, it appears that fans are ready. The VIP tickets quickly sold out, Budafuco told the Herald, but there are still general admission tickets available. If You Go: What: Best of the Best International Music Festival When: Sunday, May 25 Time: Doors open at 2 p.m.- 10 p.m. Where: Bayfront Park, 301 Biscayne Blvd., Miami Cost: Tickets start at $95, kids under 12 get in free For Tickets: or 305-438-9488 or 955-470-7666
Yahoo
16-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
‘I would never bleach again,' Vybz Kartel reflects on past skin-bleaching and why he did it
Jamaican artist Vybz Kartel admits that his years of skin bleaching were the consequences of a struggle with self-love. This weekend, New Yorkers celebrated Jamaican artist Vybz Kartel's historic comeback performance at the Barclays Center. Leading up to his first show in the U.S. in over 20 years, the 'Worl Boss' appeared on Hot 97's 'Ebro In the Morning,' where he opened up about his past with skin bleaching. Just as he is known for his hit dancehall songs, Kartel, who was incarcerated for 13 years in Jamaica, was known for bleaching his skin. Now, the Jamaican artist proudly declares he's 'fully melanated' and is reflecting on his participation in the controversial beauty trend. 'I would never bleach again […] in hindsight, I think it was, it definitely had to do with self-love,' Kartel said. 'But on the other hand, while I was doing it, my mind wasn't telling me that. My mind was telling me, 'Oh, I'm doing this to show my tattoos because I got a lot of tattoos,' blah blah blah.' However, the 'Fever' singer wasn't as open to discussing the controversy associated with skin bleaching. In 2022, Kartel called out critics in a statement likening skin bleaching to Black women altering their hair. '99.99% of Black Women (1)cream their hair or (2)wear 'caucasian' wigs,' he said at the time, per Hot New Hip Hop. 'Question: ARE YOU BRAZILIAN? But u want BRAZILIAN HAIR! Or some other form of hair that is NOT African. As a matter of fact, BLACK PEOPLE CALL WHITE PEOPLE'S HAIR 'pretty hair.' BLACK PEOPLE CHECK YOURSELF BEFORE YOU CHECK SOMEONE ELSE.' Fast-forward three years, and the 49-year-old singer acknowledges the impacts of colorism around the world, but especially within Black communities. 'I mean, as Black people, we all have those issues [with] complexion-ism colorism. That Eurocentric look…Black people have always wanted to look like that I guess it has to do with slavery,' he noted. 'But looking back, I think it was just as a Black man, sometimes you have those issues.' On April 11 and April 12, Kartel performed two sold-out shows in New York City, a place he described as 'Jamaica outside of Jamaica.' With special appearances from stars like Spice, Busta Rhymes, Ne-yo, Shensea, and more, the self-proclaimed 'King of Dancehall' showed the world that he's back like he never left. More must-reads: Baseball celebrates Jackie Robinson's legacy on 78th anniversary of breaking color barrier Prosecutor says Sean 'Diddy' Combs' lawyers are looking for reasons to delay his May trial 'Raising Kanan' Season 4, Episode 6: The emergence of Jukebox the Diabolical
Yahoo
28-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Vybz Kartel Announces First U.S. Concert In Over 20 Years
Vybz Kartel is making his official return to the states. The dancehall legend will be headlining a show in New York City in April, marking his first performance in the U.S. in over 20 years. The Barclays Center's official X account confirmed, 'JUST ANNOUNCED: Vybz Kartel comes to Brooklyn on April 11!' The accompanying flyer reads, 'Reggae Fest: The Return Of Worl Boss Vybz Kartel.' The pre-sale starts next Tuesday (March 4) at 10 a.m. and general sale begins Thursday (March 6) at 10 a.m. Tickets can be purchased on Ticketmaster or the official Reggae Fest website. Doors open at 7 p.m. The exciting news ignited Kartel's fanbase, particularly Caribbean New Yorkers who will felt lucky the event will be held in their city. 'Nah just imagine Vybz Kartel performing BROOKLYN ANTHEM at @barclayscenter. New York might levitate,' wrote one person. Another added, 'Vybz Kartel about to turn NY upside down!' The 49-year-old hitmaker has been behind bars for the last 13 years for his connection to the murder of Clive 'Lizard' Williams of Waterford, St Catherine, along with additional charges. He was released in July 2024 and has since made a slew of public appearances and performances, most recently at the 2025 MOBO Awards. Although he has released some music while he was incarcerated, the Jamaican superstar's time in prison allowed him to observe what was going on in the dancehall scene. He recently shared his opinion about the artists who are in today's game. 'They gotta find themselves,' he told The Face. 'Like, OK, come out in Jamaica, tear up Jamaica. But there's a bigger market. And sometimes you gotta fine-tune your style to tap into the larger markets. The talent is there and I always talk to them. I say: once you strike a balance between art and commerce, take yourself a little less seriously. Humble yourself to the music. Because if you're not a student of it, you can't be a teacher.' The 'Fever' artist also revealed the advice he received from fellow Jamaican music legend Buju Banton during a conversation in Manhattan in 2004. 'He told me: 'Once you slow it down and they hear you, you win.' That's when I started fine-tuning it. Then '05, the next year, I get my first Deejay of the Year,' he recalled of his victory at the International Reggae & World Music Awards. 'And it went uphill from there.' Revisit Vybz Kartel's hits below and see the details for his upcoming Barclays Center show above. More from Vybz Kartel Picks A Side In Drake-Kendrick Lamar Rap Feud Cardi B Defends Vybz Kartel After Comments About His Physical Appearance Vybz Kartel Prioritizing Health Following Prison Release: "Just Being Free Is Just An Amazing Feeling"
