Vybz Kartel Celebrates Prison Release With New Ink

Vybz Kartel during The Official Welcome Back Concert - Backstage at Nassau Coliseum in New York City, New York, United States.
Vybz Kartel during The Official Welcome Back Concert – Backstage at Nassau Coliseum in New York City, New York, United States. (Photo by Johnny Nunez/WireImage/Getty Images)

Vybz Kartel celebrated his recent prison release with some new ink, a bird flying from its cage, referring to his new freedom hood. On Saturday (August 10), Vybz hopped on Instagram to share the new tattoo with fans. “Freedom Street #GodistheGreatest. Tattoo by @brandodiinksurgeon,” he wrote in the post’s caption.

Fans and artists alike jumped in the comment section like Legendary DJ Popcaan. “It’s a freedom street moment, he wrote. Whereas, Busta Rhymes kept it simple, dropping a bunch of crown emojis. In March, a Jamaican appeals court decided that his life sentence — which he received in 2014 for the murder of an alleged former associate of his, Clive “Lizard” Williams, in 2011 — was getting overturned, and he would receive a retrial. 

Vybz Kartel Reportedly Focusing On ‘Health And Wellbeing’

In a statement obtained by Fox 5 New York, the Jamaican rapper said he felt “victorious at this moment” and that the Privy Council “understood the assignment and remedied the situation.” He continues: ” A grace injustice was done to me and my [co-defendant] accused in the original trial.” Vybz also said: “Some people have expressed their concern to me that a retrial may be ordered, but to them, I say (albeit with my limited knowledge of the law) what is there to retry?” On August 1, the prolific figure in Jamaican music was finally released from prison.

Packed with his newfound sense of freedom, Vybz Kartel later told the outlet he’s been focusing on his health. In 2010, Vybz began facing a diagnosis of Graves’ Disease. “Healthwise, you know I’m working on my health right now,” Kartel said. “But the feeling of just being free is just an amazing feeling.” Per the National Institute Of Health, Graves’ Disease is an autoimmune disorder that can cause hyperthyroidism or overactive thyroid. “The thyroid is a small, butterfly-shaped gland in the front of your neck. Thyroid hormones control the way your body uses energy, so they affect nearly every organ in your body, even the way your heart beats,” their website reads.