Vybz Kartel Shuts Down Mavado Talk: "Nobody Can Make Me Pree Mavado"
Vybz Kartel has shut down speculation that his recent cryptic posts were aimed at Mavado, saying in an Instagram video that nobody could make him "pree" his fellow deejay — while admitting he trolls people and studies dancehall closely. The captions that sparked the talk read "Arena Shella. Everybody Else A Play Ketchup" and "Birds of a feather flop together." The two men anchored the Gaza versus Gully rivalry in the late 2000s before making peace in 2009, and Kartel is also celebrating his first Canadian certification, with "Fever" going double platinum on November 5. Mavado has not responded.
(ReggaeVibeMedia.com) - Vybz Kartel wants everybody to know he is not losing sleep over Mavado. In a new Instagram video, the Worl' Boss said nobody could make him "pree" his fellow deejay, using the Jamaican slang for watching somebody closely or fixating on them, and he shut down the talk that his recent posts were aimed at the Gully God.
The clip landed after days of chatter sparked by a string of Kartel's own posts and captions. One read "Arena Shella. Everybody Else A Play Ketchup," while another simply said "Birds of a feather flop together." Fans started connecting dots fast, and plenty of them landed on Mavado.
Kartel did not exactly deny being playful, though. He openly admitted that he trolls people and said he studies dancehall closely. He also added that some people may want to bring him down, but they do not possess his intelligence. That mix of denial and self-aware mischief is classic Kartel — he brushes off one reading of the posts while making it clear he enjoys stirring the pot.
The history explains why people jumped so fast. Kartel and Mavado sat at the center of the Gaza versus Gully rivalry in the late 2000s, a feud that split dancehall fans across Jamaica. Tensions ran so high that the two met with then Prime Minister Bruce Golding in December 2009, and they later embraced on stage at Sting that year in a public show of peace.
Even with that truce in the record books, any hint of friction between the two still gets the culture talking. Some fans see the posts as harmless banter from an artist who has always liked to provoke. Others think there is no smoke without fire, especially with captions that read like bars aimed at somebody specific.
Kartel's current run adds another layer. He walked free in July 2024 after more than a decade behind bars, when the Privy Council quashed his murder conviction and the Court of Appeal declined to order a retrial. Since then he has been back in full voice, and his online presence has been just as loud as his music.
The timing also lines up with a milestone. Kartel is celebrating his first certification in Canada, with his 2016 hit "Fever" officially certified double platinum by Music Canada on November 5. That a song nearly a decade old is still racking up numbers shows how far his catalog continues to travel outside Jamaica.
Mavado has not been quoted in the source material responding to any of this. With Kartel insisting he is not preeing anyone while still promising to keep trolling, the next caption could reignite the whole conversation — but for now, the Worl' Boss says there is nothing to pree.