Nailah Blackman
Granddaughter of soca's creator Lord Shorty and one of the genre's brightest modern stars: Workout with Kes, the 2023 Road March runner-up Come Home, and her own Sokah Origins concert.
- From
- Trinidad and Tobago
- Genres
- soca, groovy soca
Known for
- Workout, her breakout collaboration with Kes
- Come Home with Skinny Fabulous, second in the 2023 Road March
- Granddaughter of Ras Shorty I (Lord Shorty), the creator of soca
- Host of the Sokah Origins concert, staged for the sixth time at Carnival 2025
Watch Nailah Blackman
Who she is
Nailah Blackman carries soca in her blood, literally. She is the granddaughter of Garfield Blackman, better known as Lord Shorty and later Ras Shorty I, the calypsonian credited with inventing soca in the 1970s.1,2 She talks openly about that inheritance: her grandfather, she told VICE, wanted "a music that was completely Trinidad" and spelled it "sokah": the soul of calypso, with the "-kah" standing for "divine" in Hindi.2
Today she is one of the leading voices of the new generation. Billboard calls her a "Caribbean Music Award-winning soca superstar", and her career has carried her from Trinidad fetes to festival stages across the diaspora.1
Signature sound and key songs
Nailah's voice is bright, playful and instantly recognisable, and she moves easily between sweet groovy soca and up-tempo road songs. Her breakthrough came with "Workout", made with Kes frontman Kees Dieffenthaller for Carnival 2017, and she has since taken soca to Carnival stages and festivals abroad.2,1
Since then she has stacked up fete staples, including "Sweet & Loco" and "Best Self" with Lyrikal. In March 2025 she announced her second studio album, Born A Diamond (B.A.D.), with the Roy Woods duet "Feels Like Love" and a promise of soca with splashes of Dominican bouyon, R&B, Afrobeats and dancehall.1
Carnival legacy
Nailah's biggest Road March run so far was "Come Home", her duet with Vincentian star Skinny Fabulous. At Carnival 2023 it finished second only to Bunji Garlin's "Hard Fete" at the judging points.3,4
She has also built her own Carnival institution. Her Sokah Origins concert, whose name echoes her grandfather's original spelling, reached its sixth edition during Carnival 2025.1 For many visitors it is the perfect bridge between soca history and the sound of right now.
Start here
- "Come Home" (with Skinny Fabulous, 2023): the Road March runner-up and a modern classic.
- "Workout" (with Kes): the breakthrough.
- "Sweet & Loco": her signature sweet-soca sound.
- "Best Self" (with Lyrikal): a feel-good fete anthem.
- "Feels Like Love" (with Roy Woods, 2025): a taste of the Born A Diamond era.
Sources
More soca artists
- Soca artistKes the BandTrinidad's soca band of brothers, fronted by Kees Dieffenthaller: pop, rock and reggae-flavoured soca, the streaming giant Hello, and a 2020 Road March with Iwer George.Read more
- Soca artistVoiceAaron 'Voice' St Louis: three straight Groovy Soca Monarch titles (2016-2018), thoughtful lyrics over sweet groovy soca, and runner-up in the 2026 Road March with Cyah Behave.Read more
- Soca artistPatrice RobertsSoca's raspy-voiced hitmaker: the youngest woman to win the Road March (Band of the Year with Machel Montano, 2006) and the voice behind the viral Mind My Business.Read more
Sources
- Billboard: Nailah Blackman announces new 'Born a Diamond' LP (14 Mar 2025)
- VICE: Nailah Blackman profile
- Trinidad Guardian: Bunji is king of the road (2023 Road March results)
- Recording Academy (GRAMMY.com): 5 Artists Essential to Contemporary Soca (Feb 2023)
- Nailah Blackman official website
- YouTube: Nailah Blackman x Skinny Fabulous, Come Home (Official Music Video)
Last verified 3 October 2026. Spotted something wrong? Send a correction.