Soca sensation

SOCA is back. First came, in November, the energetic debate triggered by Scorch Radio’s list of the top 101 soca songs in history.

Then there was word that the International Soca Monarch would return. On January 17, the details of the Ultimate Soca Champion competition, with a $1 million prize, were unveiled by Jerome “Rome” Precilla.

Days prior, Machel Montano made history by taking the genre to NPR’s Tiny Desk concert series, a US-based media platform with a global audience of millions. And Kees Dieffenthaller topped an iTunes chart with his first release for Carnival 2025, Cocoa Tea.

News broke on January 23 that Mr Montano, a multiple Road March and Soca Monarch winner, will compete for the Chutney Soca Monarch crown. It’s the first time a reigning Calypso Monarch will attempt this feat.

Many have welcomed the 50-year-old’s foray into chutney, considering that his entry, Pepper Vine, features relatively fresh talent like Keisha “Lady Lava” Harris and Keshav Chandradath Singh, of Jus Now fame.

Others are sceptical of Mr Montano’s seeming crossover, yet again, into a new forum, having last year surprised and thrilled with his entry into Dimanche Gras after decades in soca. One day of Carnival week has already long been devoted by fans to him and that practice will resume on February 24 with his Monday Madness event.

To witness Mr Montano’s continuing evolution, however, is to be reminded of the very fabric of our society.

Few things better embody TT’s multiculturalism than soca.

Long before “diversity” became a global buzzword – and target of radical far-right demagogues – ours has been a nation whose very DNA has been defined by the embrace of people of all backgrounds.

Soca’s multi-racial history, like Carnival’s, is our history.

Invented by Ras Shorty I, it was designed to embody the “soul of calypso,” and was a fusion of Afro- and Indo-Trinidadian rhythms.

Drupatee Ramgoonai, with whom Mr Montano has collaborated, is credited with being the mother of chutney soca, effectively coining the phrase in 1987. She’s also featured on Pepper Vine.

Notwithstanding the bright spots of Mical Teja’s DNA, Patrice Robert’s Anxiety and Bunji Garlin’s Contract, soca last year took a back seat to calypso, reflecting years of stagnation.

However, stars like Mr Montano, alongside icons like SuperBlue, continue to stretch the boundaries of how we perceive the parameters of our native music.

Refashioning himself, SuperBlue in December released a tribute to the 1881 and 1884 Canboulay Riots.

It is heartening to see producers like George Singh and Mr Precilla partnering with others internationally to expand the reach of all of this.

State of emergency or no, soca will reign sensationally come Carnival 2025.