Vybz Kartel - Up 2 Di Time

Artist: Vybz Kartel
Album: Up 2 Di Time
Genre: Reggae: Dancehall
Release Date: Oct 28, 2003
Label: Greensleeves
RIYL: Busy Signal, Mavado

Rating: ****

Vybz Kartel is one of the leading artists of a young generation of dancehall toasters of the new millenium. When this, his debut dropped, it was refreshing, filled with fantastic lyrics featuring excellent allusions and a great flow Vybz, busts his way through 19 tracks and nearly an hour of material. Ultimately this is the album's problem as some of the tracks are a bit forgettable. Regardless, it's an extremely strong effort with plenty of highlights and no truly bad songs. Vybz tastefully uses hip-hop fusion in places such as on the catchy "Start Well", however, the majority of the album is straightforward dancehall. Many lyrics are typical of the genre, tales of sexual prowess and murder, but the occasional social critique (such as on "Who Knows") appears along with the surprisingly mature feminist "Why Again" where Vybz attacks the treatment of woman by gangster culture. On the absolutely genius "Robbery", Vybz Kartel disses almost every major old jamaican artist out there (including Buju Banton, Beres Hammond, Beenie Man, and Mad Cobra among others) by telling a fake narrative of robbing each of them by gunpoint. He keeps the song tastefully playful by telling us in the chorus "This ain't serious". It's this creativity and skill that puts Vybz a head above the rest contemporary dancehall has to offer.

1. Badman Party ***
2. Tattoo ****
3. Good Inna Clothes ***
4. Sweet to the Belly *****
5. Kartel & Kardinal ***
6. Sen On ****
7. Di Way We Roll ****
8. Badman Nah *****
9. New Millenium ****
10. Robbery *****
11. Live U Life ****
12. Why Doing It ****
13. Start Well *****
14. Pussy Jaw ****
15. A.K.A. ***
16. Who Knows ***
17. Why Again *****
18. Buss It Off ****
19. Bonus: Freestyle *****