Vybz Kartel’s Latest Album Sells Only Eight Copies In First Week
Dancehall.Mobi special update – just last week, leading dancehall deejay Vybz Kartel released his “Pon Di Gaza” album independently via Adidjahiem Records/NotNice Records, but according to some reports – based on Nielsen SoundScan figures – a measly eight copies of the album were sold in its first week. 519 individual downloads of various singles off the album were recorded for the same first week period.
While the album release was done without the backing of a major label/distributor, and seemingly with minimal marketing support, if the numbers are indeed correct, they are particularly stunning given Vybz Kartel’s local and global popularity. How could it be that Jamaica’s most popular (at this time) deejay manages to sell only 8 copies of his album in its first week?
Quite a few factors seem to be at play here, with the key one likely being the simple fact that hardcore dancehall / reggae fans do not support Jamaican music by buying it; they really prefer to download it for free (a quick search at Twitter and Google shows numerous places to download “Pon Di Gaza” illegally at not cost). There was no visible attempt to market the album to a crossover audience (i.e. American / British / Japanese etc. listeners who will actually pay for music), and the hardcore base of dancehall / reggae fans apparently do not want to pay for music.
Dancehall/reggae is popular, but it has never really been a huge seller. Sean Paul’s “Imperial Blaze” album was released in August, and reportedly sold almost 30,000 units in its first week; but compare that to Jay-Z whose “Blueprint 3″ reportedly sold almost 500,000 in its first week just last month. In the past decade, Shaggy and Sean Paul have been Jamaica’s biggest international sellers, while others such as Stephen Marley, Elephant Man, Mavado and Serani have enjoyed some success in recent times. The key factor in all instances has however been the crossover marketing. If the product isn’t marketed for crossover appeal, it will have to rely on sales via reggae / dancehall fans, and unfortunately this continues to be disappointing.
“Pon Di Gaza” is available online @iTunes and @Amazon; if you’re a fan, buy your copy now.
Yow a gully mi seh, but big man ting mi naa laugh after kartel or diss him cause dem seh he is the most popular artist in JA so if he only sold 8 copies then that is dissapointing for dancehall music.But im shouda promote it betta than that especially since is not a major label album.lastly im need fi get back im visa so im can get that crossover appeal.Yow a gully me seh but me ago spend mi 8 dollars now and support di music
LOL YO GOD BLESS DI 8 PEOPLE WEH BUY THAT ALBUM DEH. THE ARTICLE IS ON POINT. YU HAFFI MARKET TO PEOPLE WEH BUY MUSIC.
AM I AMONG THE 8?COZ I HAV A COPY OFCAUSE NOT THE ORIGINAL ALBUM…SIR KARTEL’S ALBUM IS SELING MASSIVE IN KENYA..Kudoos
‘DEM DIS GAZA PRINCE WHILE WE COVER MILE STONE’ SIR KARTEL MASSIVE PON DE GAZA CD`s ON DE STREETS OF NAIROBI.Gaza me say
KENYAN WE DRIVE DE GAZA FLAG PON DE SKY n BEYOND… ORGANIZE A SHORT VISIT PLIZ PON DE GAZA CREW IN KENYA…PLIZ! PLIZ!
yow mungasia yu a OD di ting go easy wid the posting dem star mi eye a bun mi iyah
ALLIANCE,GULLY MI SEH!PEOPLE JUST SUPPORT DE MAN THING, HIM HAVE A FAMILY HIM HAVE TO EAT BUT REMEMBER ALLIANCE TO DE WORLD.
yow chris1,me no egniting na unburning fire…da blaze is high n mighty across de globe Sir Kartel is up n supreme…
yow the teacha a do im thing, but the marketing poor but unnu fi memba seh the boss branch off own label and thing, new artistes a try expose, so the thing ago tek time fi establish. VYBZ KARTEL can neva flap the sky is the limit.
Good Karma bad Karma everyone needs god in their lives to set the thing and maintain it.Look in the mirror and try to change a lot a thing about themselves. if the message is good it must come through the hands of a good messenger,and the mind of a good messenger. being responsible for one,s action is important because everyone must consent to whatever they do.Music should not be something that people hide behind to do unscrupulous things and it was never said that musicians should be gansters, some artists are like girls who start fights and then hide behind men to protect them, the music should be the universal language of love and peace not the breeding ground for war and scandal, vain people who live for money guns and glory and braggers with fork tongues are producers of mixed messages and mixed message confuses the population who steal music instead of buying it.
A gully is a passage where refuse and sewer flows.
Gaza is a deadly place in palestine how waterford became one i dont know.
Both is designed to segregate.
The music yearns for unity now because the fans are irate.
Not everyone here believes in this gully/gaza thing
Cause its more seperation and bad vibes it bring
Kartel/Ninjaman you know what happened
Movado/Footahype to soon to be forgotten
Two men who have changed
At times i wonder if they are deranged
politics devided us
for years we have been travelling on this damn war bus
check the lyrical contents of an artist mind
Disguised words that are not too kind
So every youth want to be a shotta
Some kind of loser, a beggar not a teacher
If Addi is one then he is not showing it
Movado have a lot to prove is heready for it
Clean up the thing man
And you will prosper in more ways than one.
yow kartel and movado always a cuss politicians sey dem a divide ghetto youth yet dem a perpetuate the whole thing in a dem music so dem can generate money out of it. yow dem a hypocrite start just like the politicians whey dem cuss…. Mi concerned
guys wanna know the problem. the album never advertise good cause i only heard of it on youtube like a few days ago. if it was advertise better, the man wudda do much better than 8 copies. but kartel your still the baddest artist and me still rate you to di max
kartel a mi artist still and him album dem always sell off mi nuh know a wah happen dis time ,too much bootlegging a gwaan wid dancehall music dat mi seh.
I really wish Dancehall music the best, we need an organization to help better the marketing and long term future of the artist and their products
a beer f-ry a gwan in a di music bizz dem need fi clean up dem ack but still gaza to the f-in worl kartel album soon sell di man soon step up him nah watch nuh face him just a hold di faith life hard pan di gaza but ghetto youths will survive big the queens girlz straight
Exactly what mi a sey, too much downloading a gwaan, his record label did not promote im well or his cd release, If he was to do t.v. commercial in J.A as well as di states di man would have sold more than eight copies, but just because he sold eight copies does not mean his album is not good, I heard it and it is great, I think people don’t buy cds anymore is only because the way the economy is right now that is why everyone downloads, but I will support him because that’s my favorite artist. he always will be one of the top best in dancehall music anyways.
mimijamaica
The reason Vibez Kartel nah sell is because Dancehall rubbish nowah days. If yuh a Dancehall artist and wan sell platinum, bring back the original formula. If Dancehall nah sound like Risto Benji, Shabbba Rankin or Ninja Man, forget it. The world wan fi hear the original Dancehall sound. Nowadays too many artist dem wan flex like di Yankee Bwoy dem. Di people nah go respect an artist if him try to hard fi be a Yankee e.g. wearing basketball & NFL jersies. Yard man ah wear soccer jersey. Without soccer or the original Dancehall Supercat/Ninjaman formula…..Dancehall ah dead!
weh can i buy a cd at in the usa