Key Takeaways
- God & Time is set for release on June 5 through TJ Records and Vybz Kartel Muzik, with distribution by Zojak World Wide.
- The album includes confirmed collaborations with Farruko, Skillibeng, and Shenseea, and arrives with a title track and official video.
- Kartel is also scheduled to reunite with Mavado for a performance at Reggae Sumfest following the album’s release.
Vybz Kartel has a new full-length project on the way. On Wednesday (May 20), the Jamaican dancehall legend announced that his forthcoming album, God & Time, will arrive June 5 via TJ Records/Vybz Kartel Muzik, with distribution handled by Zojak World Wide.
The announcement came with the release of the project’s title track and official video, which was directed by Ruppi and filmed in Miami and Kingston. As explained via press release, “God & Time” pulls from the Jamaican expression of the same name, one rooted in faith, patience, and destiny. That meaning also informs the larger body of work, which is expected to move through personal reflection, dancehall anthems, sensual records, crossover moments, and more vulnerable writing from the self-proclaimed Worl' Boss.
God & Time will include an all-star group of collaborators, including Puerto Rican superstar Farruko, Skillibeng, and Shenseea, who appears on the previously released single “Panic.” Additional features are expected to be announced soon.
The project follows a major post-prison-release run for Kartel, born Adidja Palmer. After spending 13 years incarcerated, his murder conviction was quashed by the U.K. Privy Council — Jamaica's highest court of appeal — in March 2024. Jamaica’s Court of Appeal later declined to retry the case, and he was released in July of that same year. Since then, he returned to the stage, expanded his public profile, and earned back-to-back Best Reggae Album Grammy nominations tied to Party With Me and Heart & Soul.
A landmark Sumfest reunion is next for Vybz Kartel
Kartel’s summer will also include a major moment at Reggae Sumfest. He is set to headline the July 18 event alongside Mavado, reuniting two artists whose long-running rivalry helped define 2000s dancehall culture.
The upcoming album also reconnects Kartel with longtime collaborator TJ Records, the team behind Viking (Vybz Is King) and King of the Dancehall, the latter of which included his RIAA Gold-certified hit “Fever.” Additionally, his post-release single, “God Is The Greatest,” has already surpassed 30 million video views year-to-date, giving God & Time (and Kartel’s next era) a strong lead-in.