Lisa Hyper

Popcaan

Tommy Lee

Colleagues of embattled deejay Vybz Kartel say there has been a void in dancehall music since his incarceration almost one year ago.

Despite a number of new singles being released, there is the general feeling that dancehall has not been the same.

According to Andre 'Pim Pim' Henry, one of the deejay's close associates, the standard of the music has dropped significantly since Kartel's incarceration.

"Dancehall change. Kartel usually hold it up pon a certain level and dem nah hear from him so the ting kinda drop since him incarceration. Some a di artiste dem nuh have no motivation unless dem a hear fi him tune, so dem need fi hear from him so dem can elevate demself ..."

Deejay Tommy Lee shared some of the same sentiments. According to him, Kartel is greatly missed from the scene.

In a statement to THE WEEKEND STAR Tommy Lee said he is hoping that all will go well with his mentor's case. "Him missed greatly from the scene. Is a very hard working artiste, everyday him always at the studio first. Him is a funny person too always happy times and nuff jokes," he said.

When interviewed the self-professed 'Girl Boss' Gaza Slim who is also charged jointly with Kartel in one of the matters stated, "At the end of the day you have nuff good artiste out there but a lot is missing. Kartel plays a good part in dancehall. Just like if you a cook curry goat, if you nuh have no curry then sumn missing. Addi bring a vibe and a flavour to dancehall."

At the same time, noted producer Elvis said, "The music miss him (Kartel) a lot. Since his incarceration nobody has filled the void. When the other artistes get hot is just for a month or two. When Kartel is around him run the place for a long time."

THE WEEKEND STAR also spoke to former Portmore Empire member, Lisa Hyper. Despite being booted from the group since 2009 Hyper said, "Right now everybody miss Vybz even him enemies, even me. Don't get mi wrong mi have mi good up, good up man from Gaza to Laza (Morgan), but a Kartel alone can get mi bruk out ina dance as an entertainer."

She went on to say that, "Everybody makes mistakes and he has been incarcerated for a year now, he is somebody's child too. It's very evident he has his messed up ways but without him inna dancehall we been having some messed up days."

Despite this, there are those who feel that although the deejay is missing from the scene, the music is still on par.

According to producer Chrome, "Dancehall hasn't dropped since Kartel's incarceration. Kartel was a big element of dancehall and he's missed, his flavour is missing. The standard of dancehall is, however, still there."

Meanwhile, THE WEEKEND STAR sought to get a comment from Christian Tavares-Finson one of the lawyers representing Kartel before the courts.

Although reluctant to say much about the case he told THE WEEKEND STAR that his client has been 'coping' and that he is 'confident' that he will be vindicated.