Tributes are pouring in from throughout the Caribbean and past following the loss of life of Nicole “Niki” David, affectionately often known as Saint Lucia’s “Queen of Soca.” The beloved performer handed away on June 2 on the age of 51.
“Relaxation in peace one of many biggest performers out of St Lucia,” fellow artist Arthur Allain posted on Instagram. “Phenomenal vocalist… Could her legacy dwell on by her music.”
David’s most cancers analysis was publicly shared final 12 months by a GoFundMe web page organized by her associate, Rody, and Giselle Brown. “This analysis has come as a profound shock to us all, as her signs had appeared minor till additional testing revealed simply how severe her situation had change into,” the fundraising put up learn. The marketing campaign efficiently reached its £10,000 aim to help therapy abroad, although David finally underwent chemotherapy in Saint Lucia on account of journey dangers. “No matter you can provide goes a good distance as a result of chemo and all of the little issues they should do to get the physique again on observe could be very costly,” she shared in a November 2024 video replace.
Niki’s music profession started with the band DN5 and took off after the 1998 launch of her hit Put Your Waist Into It. In 2005, she shattered glass ceilings by changing into the primary — and nonetheless solely — girl to win Saint Lucia’s Street March title with Queen of the Jungle (Bounce). Her groundbreaking achievement marked a pivotal second within the island’s Carnival historical past.
She later took the stage on the 2009 Saint Lucia Jazz Competition, performing alongside international icons Patti LaBelle, Chaka Khan, and George Duke. Through the years, her title turned synonymous with infectious Carnival anthems reminiscent of Mate, Jammette, Street Block, and Wukking Up is We Tradition — songs that captured the vibrancy of Lucian life and the ability of feminine presence in soca.
Past her musical abilities, Niki was deeply woven into the material of her neighborhood — a heat and beneficiant spirit, usually noticed at karaoke nights and native occasions. Her closing public efficiency got here in the course of the 2024 Soca Monarch Finals in a stirring collaboration with Kisha Kay and Claudette Peters on It’s Carnival Once more.
Deputy Prime Minister and Tourism Minister Dr. Ernest Hilaire summed up the nationwide grief and pleasure in a transferring tribute:
“The carnival and musical fraternity mourns the lack of a beloved and treasured gem, buddy and soca queen, Nicole David. A real Soca Queen — not simply by title, however by the plain hearth she dropped at the style — she leaves behind a carnival of recollections and melodies that can echo by time. Her bodily presence is not with us, however her spirit won’t ever fade. Her voice lives in each fete, each street march, each soul that dances to the rhythm of the islands. She could also be gone, however her music makes her immortal. Relaxation in energy, Queen. The stage is dimmer with out you, however the heavens simply bought a bit of louder.”
