Kartel could struggle to fit in – Hope

Music professor and dancehall expert Professor Donna Hope said she believes that if Vybz Kartel makes a dancehall comeback, he may not reign at the hierarchy's top.

"Vybz Kartel has been out for so long, and it's a new version of dancehall, with a lot of new stars who don't even know Kartel very well. So if he comes back now and his health is quite compromised, he will have a lot of work to do to kind of rise above them," said Hope. She said the new wave of artistes has captured the minds and attention of this generation to another level.

"And unlike the guys from [Kartel's] timeline who used to pay a lot of homage to Kartel, call him out in their songs all the time, these young ones are just doing their own thing [because] they are not that connected to him," she said.

Kartel and his co-accused will find out today if they will be retried for the murder of Clive Williams, or be set free. Their conviction was quashed in March by the Privy Council. The men have spent more than a decade behind bars. Hope said that if Kartel does return, he will have a very big concert, and might pull a big crowd.

"He is very innovative, very creative but he is also ill. Plus, Kartel is almost 50 years old. [He's] is a big man and all those things are going to impact on him." Though the artiste has seemingly been releasing new music and keeping abreast with the new dancehall trends, Hope opined that it could be hard for Kartel to fit in.

"It's gonna be different because he's obviously older and trap-dancehall is very youth focused. This is the [era] of the Gen Zs and they have different focus. They are different minds, the way the music is made is different, the themes are still similar but different. The way that they have their concerts, how they enjoy it is different. Everything is different, so it would be hard for him to fit in," said Hope. Highlighting the careers of some artistes from Kartel's musical era in the early 2000s, such as Mavado and Popcaan, Hope said their careers are still relevant and active because "dem stay inna dem lane and do their own thing". She advised 'Di Teacha' to do the same.

"I'm not of the impression that he will challenge the younger artistes because Kartel has a huge repertoire and he can build on that legacy. He can live on his own legacy, so if he gets a chance to come back, he doesn't need to challenge anybody, he just needs to make music. And I know he's big on collaboration so he will collaborate," Hope stated.

She also suggested that expectations of Kartel's release are very low among members within her entertainment space and the industry.

"I know the fans are hopeful, but a lot of people in the industry are like, 'We're moving on' because people don't want to have any expectations any more. So they just want to wait and see what happens, because they feel that he may not be released [based on] all the points, the signals coming from the judge and people involved," said Hope.