3. Leadpipe and Saddis (aka Porgie + Murda)
The rest of the Caribbean is starting to catch on to what Barbados has known for the last two years: that Leadpipe and Saddis, aka Porgie and Murda, are the freshest thing happening in soca. The Bajan duo, who first came to renown on their home island with their comedic “Porgie and Murda” web video series, have had a handful of goofy hits in that guise, including their breakout track, “Condense.” But it’s a song released in their “serious” shoes as Leadpipe + Saddis that’s currently soaking up fetes across the islands. “Ah Feeling” was the “Song of De Crop” at Barbados’ carnival, Crop Over, last year, and it’s vibes are carrying into 2015, notably in Trinidad, where they’re sure to be contenders in this year’s Groovy Soca Monarch competition. Together, this duo have brought a much-needed dose of originality and leftfield-ness to a genre reliant on the overlying (and, some might say, overdone) themes of drinking rum and wining.—Jesse Serwer