THE FEUD THAT DIVIDED A COUNTRY
Gully vs Gaza
From 2006 the rivalry between Mavado's Gully and Vybz Kartel's Gaza stopped being a clash between two deejays and became a line drawn through the country — on record, in the dance and in the schoolyard. The records, the fallout, the 2009 truce and the 2026 reunion.
11 records · curated by the atlas editors
The Gully side. From Cassava Piece, off Constant Spring Road — the name of his corner became the name of half a country's allegiance.
person · Well supportedVybz KartelThe Gaza side. From Portmore's Waterford, renamed "Gaza" by his own crew — the Portmore Empire — and answered in kind.
clash · ProbableVybz Kartel vs Mavado (Gaza vs Gully)The clash itself: the exchange of records that carried the rivalry from 2006 onward.
concept · Well supportedThe Gully–Gaza fallout in schools and communitiesWhat it cost. Affiliation moved into schools and street corners, and by 2009 the state was involved.
event · Well supportedGaza-Gully Jamaica House meeting (2009)December 2009: the Government convened both artists at Jamaica House for a public truce.
event · ProbableA Taste of Reggae Sumfest — Gaza & Gully (2026)July 2026: Mavado and Kartel on the Sumfest stage together, closing a twenty-year loop.
event · Well supportedReggae SumfestThe stage where the reunion happened — Jamaica's largest annual music festival, in Montego Bay.
legal matter · Well supportedVybz Kartel Privy Council quashing decision (2024)The 2024 Privy Council decision that led to Kartel's release, and made the reunion possible.
recording · Probable"Last Man Standing" — Mavado & Vybz KartelBoth men on one track at the height of it — the title people now use for the whole episode.
recording · Probable"Gully Side" — MavadoWhere a corner name becomes an identity listeners could take on as their own.