Come Thursday, September 27, Guinness, the world’s most popular stout, will celebrate the life and legacy of its creator, Arthur Guinness. On this day, the brand will host a concert at the National Indoor Sports Centre that will feature artistes who have contributed to the growth and recognition of reggae, soca and dancehall music across the Caribbean region and other areas of the world. We share eight hit songs from those artistes:

Black Woman & Child – Sizzla

This 1997 mega hit was an international breakthrough which earned Sizzla the 1998 MOBO award and a place in various magazines’ top 100 albums of the year. He has since released over 45 solo albums and over 15 combination albums during his musical reign.

Rise to the Occasion

In 2003, Sizzla found another mega hit in this song. To this day, it is still one of the most popular dancehall songs, and when played at an event, it usually causes instant eruption. His album of the same name made the top 10 reggae albums on Billboard. With these tracks, Sizzla has made himself a force to be reckoned with.

Ravin’ – Popcaan

Popcaan’s song on the 2011 Summertime Riddim was a huge success. Now known as ‘The Ravin King’, Popcaan followed Ravin with Party Shot on TJ Records’ Smudge Riddim. Popcaan’s career got off to a strong start and it escalated after collaborating with Vybz Kartel for the release of his popular introductory song Jah Jah Protect Me.

Only Man She Want

In March 2012, this song gave Popcaan his first Billboard entry at #89 on Billboard’s R&B/HipHop Charts. He also won three local awards: Favourite Summer Song, Local Chart-topping Song of the Year for Ravin, and Young, Hot and Hype Male.

It’s Carnival – Destra

Collaborating with Machel Montano on this track which was released in 2003, Destra captivates her audiences with her fusion of punk rock and soca mix. She frequently utilises rock guitar acoustics with underlying soca rhythms. The Trinidadian is the complete package, a good performer who always gives the audience what they crave whenever she hits the stage.

Max it up

In 2006, Destra released this song and it was an instant hit with soca fans. In the same year, her look changed and a ‘soca fabulous’ look was created by local designers Meiling and Peter Elias. From a new ‘glam’ hairstyle to her bold, risqué wardrobe, Destra’s new look has been described as one which “is going to rock the town and will be a fashion force to reckon with”.

Bacchanalist – Kerwin Du Bois

This song took Carnival 2012 by storm and is still a mega hit in soca circles. Kerwin Du Bois, singer, producer and songwriter, climbed his way to the top of the Calypso world, by first winning the Junior Calypso Monarch in 1992.

Gyal Farm

Du Bois enjoyed a fantastic 2008 with this hit single which featured rising star Shal Marshall. He has collaborated with some of the veterans over the years as well as experimented in the fields of sound engineering and audio editing. He has been nominated for Soca Songwriter of the Year.