Soca sea change

AT ONE STAGE, it was almost impossible to imagine Carnival Friday without the International Soca Monarch competition.

Such was the sheer energy and excitement generated by this annual event that Carnival Friday was rechristened “Fantastic Friday.”

Performances on the Soca Monarch stage grew more epic and bombastic, fuelled in part by millions in state and private sector sponsorship.

International celebrities like Samuel Jackson and Danny Glover flocked to these shores as part of an international marketing effort that raised the profile not only of the contest but arguably soca music itself.

And yet the late cancellation of this year’s event has an aura of inevitability about it.

The first sign that something had shifted drastically in the ether came with the announcement that Machel Montano – a seven-time winner of the event who long retired from it – had shifted his own highly-subscribed annual concert to Carnival Friday.

While some might say there is enough room for two big events on Fantastic Friday, the clash was certainly not ideal.

But arguably the signs of change go back further. In more recent years, the competition has had dwindling audience numbers, has shifted from location to location and has drawn fewer top-billed performers.

In fact, if there is any value in this privately-run contest today it may be that it is an important platform for launching and nurturing new talent. For example, it has played a key role in establishing the career of Aaron “Voice” St Louis.

If we could pinpoint the exact moment when the zeitgeist shifted, however, it might be 2005, when the Soca Monarch crown was split into “power” and “groovy” categories. This change was an acknowledgement of the shifting tastes of the audience.

The changes since them have been fast and furious.

There is an entire generation unfamiliar with classic soca music of the past, such as those by longstanding figures like SuperBlue and Iwer George.

For top-tier musicians, Carnival has always been about the bigger picture: with many hopping from island to island and country to country to sustain their careers throughout the year.

Now, the internet and streaming platforms have changed how soca is encountered and consumed. Some soca artistes have even emerged through social media platforms like TikTok.

The competition-centric, cash-prize model of many of our marquee Carnival events has been supplanted by free-standing concerts and online music videos.

Covid19 has changed how people fete, or rather whether they choose to fete at all, and some promoters have been grumbling about lower attendance levels (while others have seen the “Mother of Carnivals” live up to this moniker).

If the Soca Monarch returns, it needs to reflect on these developments to be sustainable without state funding. Because of its relative youth, it is perhaps the one marquee Carnival event that has the greatest capacity to do so.