The Road is Mine.
With less than 30 days before the grand finale of Trinidad & Tobago’s Carnival 2025, a glaring void remains in the season’s Soca soundtrack. As of February 5, since the start of the 2025 Trinidad Carnival cycle, not a single female Soca artist has broken into the Apple Music Top 100 in Trinidad & Tobago. The chart is a stronghold of male dominance—an unexpected contrast given that Carnival’s revelers are overwhelmingly female.
The numbers tell a striking story. Currently, the Apple Music Top 100 in Trinidad & Tobago is entirely composed of songs by male Soca artists. Even beyond the Top 100, female representation is scarce. Lady Lava appears in the Top 200, but not for Soca—her presence comes from her more Zess-inflected tracks, “Bare Bounce” (#102) and “Ring Finger” (#124). The first Soca song featuring a female artist lands at #183—Nailah Blackman’s “Come Home,” the blockbuster collaboration with Skinny Fabulous released in 2022. Nailah hits with another duet, the recent release “Explore (Remix)” with V’ghn, is currently positioned at #195.
At the top of the charts on Apple Music, 15 male Soca artists account for over 30 Soca songs within the Apple Music Top 100 in Trinidad & Tobago. An overwhelmingly male presence in Soca’s mainstream rankings this season.
Historically, women in Soca have crafted anthems that speak to empowerment, joy, and the essence of Carnival itself. Yet this year, the genre’s leading women have yet to see that resonance translate into success they have previously garnered at the top of the Apple Music Charts in Trinidad & Tobago.
A look at the wider music industry suggests this imbalance isn’t unique to Soca. According to a recent Variety report on research from the Annenberg Inclusion Initiative, women comprised 37.7% of artists on the Billboard Hot 100 Year-End Chart in 2024—far from parity but still significantly higher than Soca’s current reality. Applying the same methodology to Apple Music Trinidad & Tobago’s recent charts, female Soca artists make up just 12.7% of the Apple Music Top 200 across all relevant charts (Dance, World, Reggae, All Genres, etc.). In Soca, the genre so intrinsically tied to women and their presence in Carnival, this underrepresentation is stark.
The Medium article Let’s Talk About Female Representation in the Music Industry from two years ago further illustrates the trend across the wider music industry. Even beyond entertainment, research shows that gender gaps persist across industries, with women holding only 26.7% of tech-related jobs today. The issue is systemic, but in Soca—where women are the core audience and consumers—the question remains: Why aren’t more women breaking through the Apple Music Top 100 this season?
There are, however, signs of movement. Though none have yet entered the Top 100, nine female soca artists account for more than 40 songs within the Apple Music (World) & (Reggae) Top 200. Nailah Blackman and Patrice Roberts each have over 10 songs, while Nadia Batson and Lady Lava each hold over five. The remaining artists—Destra Garcia, Anika Berry, Imani Ray, Marge Blackman, and Drupatee Ramgoonai—have also secured placements and maintained a foothold on the Apple Music Chart.
Notably, all of Destra, Marge, and Drupatee’s current charting tracks are collaborations with male Soca artists, which has been a key avenue for visibility among many female Soca artists. Their presence, along with the broader group of female Soca artists on the charts, underscores both the challenges and the contributions of women in the genre.
During a recent interview with Daniel Loveless, creator of What Yuh Know, Nadia Batson addressed the question “is it difficult being a woman in the industry of Soca?” To paraphrase, she highlighted, once you are locked in on your goals, although there will always be challenges, she highlighted the importance of navigating the industry, building self-confidence, and staying true to oneself.
While female representation on the Apple Music Chart in Trinidad & Tobago remains limited, their impact on Soca’s evolving sound and Carnival’s musical landscape is undeniable.
We still have a few weeks to help the female Soca artists rise into the Top 200 and beyond on Apple Music in Trinidad & Tobago, keep streaming and show your support for your favorite artist(s) and song(s).
Looking ahead, there is real opportunity in the overall growth of the genre. If Soca were to align with the wider music industry’s gender representation averages, there is clear room for female Soca artists to increase their presence from the current 12.7% to at least 30%, matching broader market baselines. The foundation is there—the talent, the music, and the audience exist.
Check out this Women in Soca 2025 Trinidad & Tobago Spotify playlist with these and many more females in Soca: