T&T producers shine on Grenada’s Soca Monarch stage

As Spicemas celebrations continue in Grenada, producers from T&T have stamped their names on the 2026 Soca Monarch stage. Michael “Stemz” Ramroop S’obrian is the man behind the winning groovy song, while Mevon “XplicitMevon” Soodeen produced the second-place power track.

Thousands gathered at the country’s national stadium on Bacchanal Friday night as their favourite artistes vied for both crowns. Twelve performed in each category.

Sabrina, the fourth act of the night, was crowned the Groovy Queen after a compelling performance of Honour You. Produced by Stemz, the track also features live guitars by T&T’s Kyle Peters and was mixed and mastered by T&T’s Johann Seaton.

Speaking to Guardian Media, Stemz—who also produced Bunji Garlin’s hit Carry It—recalled his manager randomly telling him, ‘You’re going to Grenada.’ Sabrina and her team loved the energy and sound of his previous productions and wanted to work together in person.

He was grateful to write and “experiment” with them, even as they spent several hours in the studio. “This is how it’s done… You’re not just building something and saying ‘Take that and write on it because this is what I want it to sound like.’ It’s a collaborative effort.” He asked for five of her best unreleased songs to choose what he believed would work best.

Hailing her as a versatile artiste, he said, “All the songs were great but out of all, (Honour You), in my opinion, had the most potential.” And he was right. He woke up to his phone “blowing up” on Saturday morning, learning that she had won.

He said he is thrilled not only for Sabrina but also for the people of Grenada. “I feel just an overall sense of joy because everybody that listened to this song just showed so much love and admiration for it from day one… (Grenada got) a champion who is really good at what she does.”

He said he always aims to make memorable tracks, adding that there’s no better feeling than someone believing in your brand “and you delivering exactly what they wanted.”

Peters, Stemz said, adds “smoothness” to any song he touches.

Seaton said he is also “extremely happy” and that these achievements are always a good look.

Meanwhile, after his 2026 T&T Road March win with Encore, XplicitMevon has now made his mark on Spicemas 2026. His production Next Blessing by Muddy placed second in the Power category, just trailing Snakey’s winning song Raging Seas.

He and Muddy discussed working together just after T&T’s Carnival celebrations this year. They previously collaborated in 2023 for the Elements Riddim with Bongo Mas, and Muddy also placed second then.

The two-time Road March-winning producer said he was honoured the singer chose to compete with Next Blessing from all his other releases this season. “(It) seemed to be the song that resonated the most in Grenada.”

Focused on just making good music, they only considered Soca Monarch when the registration deadline was nearing. A live remix was also done, which they consider a bit more high-energy. “But overall I felt really happy and proud to see thousands react and enjoy not only the music, but the message of Next Blessing.”