(Photo by Johnny Nunez/WireImage)
Vybz Kartel is no longer locked up, but he’s ready to be locked in! The Jamaican dancehall artist recently proposed to his longtime girlfriend Sidem ztrk. It’s been about three months since fans welcomed Vybz home after he spent 13 years in prison.
The ‘Summer Time’ singer revealed his engagement on Nov. 5 via a video on Instagram. His video starts with him showing off the ring inside its box to the camera. Then, the camera follows Kartel into a hotel room. His girlfriend Sidem was seated on a couch, dressed in sneakers, jeans, and a white tee. It’s unclear what the couple are saying to each other because the video’s audio is one of Kartel’s songs, ‘Interracial.’
Still, we see Vybz Kartel drop to one knee and place the ring on her finger. He and Sidem ztrk repeatedly kissed and hugged, and at one point, she flashed her engagement ring to the camera. His caption claims that this is his second time proposing to Sidem, with the first time being while he was locked up.
“It’s Official #1Wife. I Proposed in Prison, Proposed in #RealLife . You were there when I needed you most and I’ll never leave you baby. I cherish all the times you came to visit me and told me that it’s going to be ok. I cherish all the times we spoke on the phone and in real life in the box. We laughed together we cried together and now we celebrate together! You’re my best friend and my companion and I pray to God we stay together for as long as I Live. I Love you baby,” Vybz wrote.
The Jamaican Observer reports that Sidem and Kartel first met in 2015 while he was serving time in prison.
In a second post, Kartel and Sidem shared a closer look at her ring: a gold band with a square diamond.
For context, Vybz walked free after a Jamaican Court of Appeals had declined to retry murder charges against him. Their decision supported the United Kingdom’s Privy Council’s decision to overturn the conviction in March. After being in prison since 2011, undergoing one of the longest trials in Jamaican history, and sitting in prison for over a decade, Kartel walked free in July.
His conviction was centered around the death of his former business associate, Clive ‘Lizard’ Williams. Prosecutors accused Kartel of ordering Clive’s death. Police never recovered a body but testified at trial that Kartel’s phone contained a text about a body becoming “mincemeat.”
