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b. Adidja Palmer, 7 January 1979, Portmore, Jamaica, West Indies. Vybz Kartel was hailed as one of the leading new artists to emerge from the Jamaican dancehall scene following the release of his 2003 debut album, Up 2 Di Time. Born in the Waterford district of Jamaica, the young DJ recorded his first single at the tender age of 12, releasing ‘Fat Women’ under the Adi Banton moniker. In 1996 he formed Vybz Cartel with his friends Mr Lee and Escobar, with the trio taking their name from a movie about gangster Pablo Escobar. After falling out with his band mates Palmer opted to continue performing as a solo artist, rebranding himself as Vybz Kartel. In the late 90s he began writing lyrics for established dancehall star Bounty Killer, including the hits ‘High Grade Forever’ and ‘Warlord Rule The World’. He also collaborated with Wayne Marshall on the major dancehall hits ‘New Millennium’ and ‘Why You Doing It?’, and began to make inroads into the lucrative North American market with a num...