Matterhorn Says Vybz Kartel Wasted Years By Taunting Dancehall Rivals
Tony Matterhorn has concurred with Dancehall superstar Sean Paul that Vybz Kartel, due to his through his own action or inaction, stymied himself from penetrating and cementing his brand in the United States and the rest of the globe.
According to Matterhorn, Kartel was on a trajectory toward international greatness prior to his incarceration in 2011, but, had wasted time channeling his skills and artistry toward unnecessary musical one-upmanship over his Dancehall rivals.
“Probably if him neva get incarcerated him mighta harness it, because he had the time to harness it, but while di time Kartel suppose to harness it, Kartel was busy trying to taunt the opponents when him neva haffi,” Matterhorn argued during a recent interview with Let’s Be Honest hosts Jaii Frais and Chevi.
“Like, yuh done win di race already and you di deh pon ‘nae, ne, ne, nae ne’, when yuh neva haffi do dat. Suh him waste couple years on taunting dem… A afta Kartel get behind bars, him really a si di bigga picture fi enhance di empire. Him done build di empire, and it could have been stretched to di four corners a di world, which it did… It reach di four corners a di world but him neva set up shop a di four corners of di world,” the selector added.
According to Matterhorn, the maxim “time wasted can never be regained” caught up with Vybz Kartel as when he finally realized he was “The Man”, upcoming artists, particularly the young Juggernaut Alkaline, had already exploded onto the scene, claiming a loyal set of the Dancehall audience for himself.
“A afta him get incarcerated now, Kartel have time pon him hands…but by di time when Kartel a start do dat now, it get override by di likkle Alkaline dem and di likkle yutes dem, an Aidonia step up and Konshens dem…,” the Dutty Wine singer added.
Matterhorn also said that whether or not Gaza fans took umbrage to his statements was neither here nor there to him.
“If a Gaza fans may take offence, I care darkness….the truth is Kartel spiral out in the world but while he was spiral out in di world, what he didn’t do is set up shop. Even though he is big in those places he didn’t build the empire in those places,” he explained.
The veteran Dancehall selector had made his comments after Jai Frais told him that, while to him, Kartel was a global phenomenon, he had not lived up to expectations.
“Right now, wha wi a seh is dis: Kartel – bad artiste. To me, kartel is the greatest talent Jamaica eva si. And one a di greatest talent weh di world eva si. But in terms a weh him do, wid di talent, him neva live up to it,” Jaii Frais had contended.
As for Sean Paul, in June, the Temperature artist had said in an interview with Two Bees TV, that in addition to the revocation of visas of a slew of deejays in the late 2000s, it was also the failure of stars like Kartel to pay attention to the ebb and flow of music consumption globally, and the national preoccupation with the Gaza vs Gully feud which resulted in more Jamaican acts not crossing over.
During that interview, the host had told Sean Paul that she was working on a project analysing the careers of “big Dancehall artists that were able to cross over” and pointed out that it appeared that in the late 2000s, Dancehall artists that had influence, like Vybz Kartel, and Mavado, “struggled to cross over”.
Sean Paul had, in return, explained that while the Jamaican Dancehall followers and the artists themselves were obsessing themselves with the Gully vs Gaza feud, the international music crowd did not look their way and moved on without them.
In explaining the crossover history of the genre in the US, he also said that after Shabba and Shaggy set the pace and the doors flew open, there was a subsequent demand for hardcore Dancehall music.
However, he said while in Jamaica, Dancehall fans were having a jolly time engrossing themselves in the Gaza-Gully saga, the opportunities continued to escape Kartel et al, who were busy writing and recording clash songs to outdo each other.