BROOKLYN, NY —
Dancehall icon Vybz Kartel has set a new benchmark for Jamaican music on the live concert circuit. His two headlining performances at Barclays Center in April grossed $8.4 million and sold 31,126 tickets, according to box office data reported to Pollstar, making it the highest-grossing arena concert by a solo Jamaican dancehall artist in U.S. history.
The figure nearly doubles the previous record set by Buju Banton, whose two-night stint at UBS Arena in July 2024 grossed $4.5 million, according to Billboard Boxscore.
Promoted by CJ Milan as part of the fast-growing Reggae Fest brand, Kartel’s Barclays shows marked a symbolic return to the U.S. stage after two decades.
“In the first 45 minutes, we moved over 12,000 tickets,” Milan told World Music Views in April ahead of the show. “It proved Kartel’s reach isn’t just local—he’s global.”
On Sunday Kartel showed off his global reach with footage from a sold-out arena performance in Paris where he performed recently, accompanied by the caption:
“NO CROWD NEEDED TO PACK AN ARENA!!! Just me & GOD 🙏 NOTHING BEATS A JETFEW HOLIDAY.”
The clip, also tagged at the Ziggo Dome, where Kartel also has a sold out performance.
Arena concerts by Jamaican artists remain rare, with most reggae and dancehall acts performing in smaller clubs, Colosseums and festivals. Prior to Kartel, Buju Banton was the only solo artist from the island to sell out New York’s premier venues—once at Barclays in 2024 and twice at UBS Arena.
Banton’s 2024 Overcomer Tour grossed millions across North America last year, including record-setting ticket prices in Toronto. But with Kartel’s Brooklyn shows bringing in nearly double the New York gross, the mantle of highest-earning dancehall performance in the city now shifts.
Vybz Kartel, known for hits like Fever, Romping Shop, and Summer Time, had his 2014 murder conviction overturned by the U.K’s Privy Council last year March and in July 2024 he was freed after serving 13 years.
His last two album releases 2024 First Week Out (2024) and VIKING (Vybz Is King): 10 Year Anniversary (2025) debuted at No. 8 and No. 10 respectively on the Billboard Reggae Albums chart.
He is set to headline the Barclays again on August 29 at Massive Reggae Fest then heads to London for sold out shows at the 02 Arena in September.
