Rise of the Jab Jab in Trinbago
Three tracks from Grenada’s Spicemas 2025, Jab Decisions by V’ghn & Terra D Governor (produced by Kay Frass), Payroll by Muddy (produced by Xpert Productions), and Bury All by Lil Kerry (produced by Collis Beats), have spent the past three months on Trinidad and Tobago’s Apple Music charts. Two sit within the Top 20, while the third remains just inside the Top 100.
This marks the first time in the modern streaming era that multiple records from a single non-Trinidadian carnival have entered Trinidad’s market with sustained presence during its own Carnival season.
Population context underscores the achievement. Trinidad & Tobago’s population exceeds 1.2 million, nearly ten times that of Grenada’s 127,000 a per capita impact that highlights both the depth of Grenada’s musical influence and the strategic amplification behind it.
The story begins in Grenada. Spicemas 2025 was curated with precision to highlight the island’s cultural identity while maximizing international visibility. The Grenada Tourism Authority collaborated with media and cultural partners, including Industry 360, Mel&NMedia, and Chambers Media, to create immersive experiences: ceremonial drumming, workshops on Jab Jab’s history and ritual significance, and curated access for journalists and influencers.
Rolling Stone staff writer Mankaprr Conteh, who attended as part of the Spicemas press trip experience, described the roads as “flush with youth throwing flames into the air… dancing to dark, intense soca from the local stars of the season, especially the riotous ‘Bury All’ by Lil Kerry,” grounding her account in cultural context, and introducing the Jab Jab sound to a broader readership.
Conteh’s piece soon fed broader visibility, particularly Muddy’s Payroll, which later appeared on Rolling Stone’s 100 Best Songs of 2025 list, an editorial milestone that followed months of strategic press engagement and diaspora circulation.
The tracks’ circulation did not stop at Grenada’s shores. Attendees across North America carried the music home, embedding it in diaspora circuits such as Toronto Carnival, NYC Labor Day, and Miami Carnival…eventually bringing it back to the Caribbean at the doors of the Mecca of Carnival.
Jab Decisions and Payroll delivered unprecedented firsts for Grenadian soca in the North American diaspora. Both records debuted on New York City’s Spotify Local Pulse, at #42 and #58 respectively, marking the first time songs from Grenada’s Jab Jab sound entered the NYC urban listening index.
Payroll extended that presence by entering New York’s Shazam Top 100 at #46 for two consecutive weeks, another first for a Grenadian record.
Meanwhile, Jab Decisions demonstrated deeper staying power in Canada, peaking at #10 on Toronto’s Spotify Local Pulse and remaining there for six weeks. Payroll followed with three consecutive weeks on the same chart, reaching #54.
These were not signs of momentary virality. They reflect steady accumulation, repeat listening, and growing familiarity within diaspora audiences months before Trinidad Carnival began.
Both Jab Decisions and Payroll first appeared on Trinidad and Tobago’s Apple Music Top 200 in mid-August, in the immediate aftermath of Spicemas. In each case, the entries lasted a single day, a brief spillover from festival momentum rather than true market penetration.
The turning point came in October, after months of touring through Caribbean diaspora circuits abroad. Tobago Carnival served not as the cause, but as the geographic bridge through which that accumulated familiarity entered Trinidad’s listening market.
This time, when the tracks re-entered the Apple Music Top 200 in Trinidad & Tobago in early November, they did not leave.
Jab Decisions returned at #146 and began a continuous climb that has now exceeded 100 days, reaching a peak of #6 on February 9.
Payroll, which had earlier touched the chart at #112 in August, re-established itself in November and steadily advanced to #16, its highest position to date, with more than 60 days spent inside the Top 100.
Bury All, performed by Grenada’s Soca Monarch Lil Kerry, followed a later but accelerating path. The record debuted on Trinidad’s Top 200 in mid-January at #170. Within 20 days it had moved into the Top 100, reaching a peak of #97 on February 6 and sitting at #107 as of February 9.
Each record entered Trinidad on a different timetable and under different conditions but by early February 2026, all three tracks were firmly planted in Trinidad, Soca Music most competitive landscape.
Spicemas 2025 demonstrated the power of intentional cultural amplification. Thoughtful festival design, targeted media coverage, strategic diaspora engagement, and digital accessibility combined to give these records sustained recognition across multiple markets. By the time Trinidad audiences encountered them, the songs were already familiar, backed by months of listening, performance, and validation.
Equally important was the Grenadian artists’ presence on the ground throughout the fourth quarter and into Trinidad Carnival. Traveling and performing as a contingent, they carried their music alongside visible markers of national identity: the Grenadian flag and cultural symbols signaled pride and collective cohesion. This was not a series of isolated appearances; it was a coordinated cultural effort that converted awareness into embedded listening.
For soca, this moment shows how smaller-island markets can exert measurable influence on Trinidad and Tobago’s historically insular ecosystem when artistry, festival production, diaspora circulation, and streaming strategy align. The impact reflects the convergence of artistic intent, festival strategy, sustained diaspora engagement, streaming accumulation, and cultural cohesion, proof that influence can be achieved without diluting identity.
More broadly, it suggests a replicable blueprint for cross-island impact: music, when amplified intelligently, can travel laterally, accrue legitimacy, and secure a lasting presence in competitive markets. The combination of festival experience, diaspora circulation, and digital metrics demonstrates that cultural products can thrive beyond their origin while remaining rooted in identity, a model increasingly relevant to Soca’s evolving landscape.
Honorable Mentions
Other tracks from Spicemas 2025 have also shown sustained traction in Trinidad & Tobago. Grease It by Dred Lion and Soca Collective (produced by Ohmic), and Do For Do by Tallpree & Smokie (produced by Impulse Productions and Big Red Production) have remained on Apple Music’s Alternative and World charts respectively for the past two to three months. While these tracks contribute to the collective Jab Jab output from Spicemas 2025, they did not enter Trinidad’s Top 200 during the period, underscoring the exceptional performance of Jab Decisions, Payroll, and Bury All.
It is worth noting that Grenadian music has long circulated in Trinidad and Tobago: other songs, artists, collaborations, and earlier seasons have made their presence felt on the charts and in daily listening. The Trinbago-Greenz connection has always been vibrant. What makes the Spicemas 2025 Jab Jab moment distinct is scale and simultaneity. Never before have this many tracks from a single period, backed by sustained on-the-ground presence and digital traction, achieved such a concentrated impact. This observation does not diminish prior contributions from Grenadian artists; it simply underscores the unprecedented nature of this particular cultural moment.
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