Vybz Kartel interview: Dancehall icon talks prison release, what's next l WATCH
NEW YORK - Jamaican music icon Vybz Kartel spoke exclusively to FOX 5 NY’s Lisa Evers after he was released from prison, where he spent 14 years before his conviction was quashed.
Kartel told Evers about the fateful moment and discussed his new music, family and future in the exclusive interview:
'The feeling of just being free is an amazing feeling'
In 2014, a Jamaican judge sentenced Vybz and three co-defendants to life in prison in the 2011 murder of an associate, Clive "Lizard" Williams.
On July 24, he walked out of the Tower Street Adult Correctional facility in Kingston, Jamaica and did not look back.
"The feeling of just being free is an amazing feeling. Lisa, it's so surreal I have to pinch myself just to see that I'm awake," Kartel said.
At times, his case had looked hopeless, but no matter how harsh the prison conditions and no matter how big the obstacles, he never gave up. Neither did his attorney, Isat Buchanan, who waged fierce and focused legal battles, eventually convincing the highest courts in Jamaica and the UK to throw out the verdict and order his release.
"Hard work and dedication, we believed in ourselves, believed in our legal team Isat Buchanan, and we had help inside and outside, especially you Lisa, you made everyone make sure they had to cross their t's and dot their i's, and be sharp," Kartel said.
On July 31, while many were glued to the Jamaica Court of Appeal live feeds covering the decision on his case, Kartel says he was on the phone talking with his fiancé, Sidem Ozturk.
Where is Vybz Kartel? Dancehall star seen leaving Jamaican prison alongside girlfriend
Kartel was seen leaving Tower Street Adult Correctional Facility, wearing all white with an orange bandanna around his head and face alongside his fiancée.
"She was like babe, I'm on my way to get you, and then when the verdict was read, she was like, 'Baby, you're free!'" Kartel said.
Kartel said then another member of his legal team texted him with the message "pack your bags".
"I brought a few sentimental things, like Sidem had bought me a cologne, I brought that with me, like a body mist, so that's it, that's all I brought out, oh and a lyric book, you know I can't leave my lyrics," Kartel said.
What's next for Vybz Kartel?
Kartel told FOX 5 NY he wrote hundreds of songs in prison. Less than 24 hours after he got out, his new 12 track mixtape called "First Week Out" was released and is already starting to make it's way up the charts. He told Evers that this is just the beginning.
"We have albums worth of songs, a lot of writing about the situation, not about the situation, a plethora of lyrics," Kartel said.
For now, the focus is on reconnecting with family members, spending time with his sons, and recovering from the health problems that put his life on the line.
"I just want to say to the fans, thank you for the love, thank you for being there by my side, to my extended family, thank you for having faith in me," Kartel said.