Recently there was an article on BBC Caribbean about the reasons for Soca’s lack of success. This sparked a lively discussion not only in the comments underneath the article, but also on other websites and blogs. Caribbean Net News for example disproves the suspicion of a conspiracy against Soca and Calypso while calling for more unity amongst the Eastern Caribbean peoples to promote their own music and culture in general.
Other important points to make are first of all the fight against music piracy and the lack of knowledge when it comes to marketing and promotion of the music. Successfull artists nowadays have not only to be professional musicans, but it is also a must:
- that they know about their rights - knowledge is power!
- that they read closely the contracts they sign or let them get checked by a lawyer
- that they seek assistance of a trustworthy, professional label that makes use of modern technologies for promotion and distribution
- to make their music available worldwide through the means of digital distribution (MP3 download shops, online stores etc).
These points might be more important for the success of Soca music than whether the beats are a bit faster or slower. Maybe it is easier to catch a wider non-Caribbean audience with a crossover of Soca and other musical styles - why not! Soca/Calypso was always open for all kinds of influences, be it Indian ones in Chutney, be it Spanish/Venezuelan ones in Parang, etc. This is what makes it such a beautiful representation of the Caribbean people and their culture.
However also “straightforward” Soca (not slowed down, not diluted with Pop melodies) can work fantastic anywhere in the world - we saw this very impressingly during the soccer World Cup in Germany, when thousands of people who had never heard of Soca before jumped and waved, danced and enjoyed themselves to the performances of Trinidadian top artists.
So not a change of music is necessary but a change in marketing and promotion methods as well as a change in the heads of listeners of Soca who far too often think it is a matter of course that music is for free and that there is no need to pay for the hard work the artist did…
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