Saint Lucia's Umpa is Billboard's Caribbean Up-And-Comer for October
Saint Lucian singer Umpa is Billboard's Caribbean Up-And-Comer for October 2026. The profile, published on 20 October, centres on Brendan Jordan Charlery, aged 32, and his work in Dennery segment Billboard.
Dennery segment is a drum-heavy, chant-forward offshoot of soca, the Caribbean dance music built for Carnival season. It was pioneered in Saint Lucia's Dennery District and blends kuduro, the fast electronic dance style from Angola, and zouk, the melodic dance music from the French Caribbean, often with lyrics in Kwéyòl, the Creole language widely spoken in Saint Lucia.
Umpa's first local breakthrough came in 2014 with "Gwatel". The song was recorded on the Revolt riddim from Jammin Records, a riddim being a shared instrumental backing track that different singers record over. It gave him a foothold in Saint Lucia more than a decade ago.
He linked up around 2019 with Young Boss Entertainment, which works as both a record label and management company. That year he released three songs, "One Drop", "Siren" and "Baguy". He followed them with "Dennery Anthem" in 2020, "Plat" in 2021, "Pain Killer" in 2025 and "Mouyè" in 2026.
Billboard notes that Umpa was the inaugural winner of the Caribbean Music Award for Dennery segment artist of the year. The category recognises artists working in the Saint Lucian sound.
What makes this stand out for new listeners is continuity. Umpa has stayed with one local sound for more than ten years, from a 2014 riddim cut to a run of singles through 2026, rather than moving between scenes.
He follows a run of recent picks in Billboard's monthly series. Trinidad soca singer Coutain was the choice for September 2026, after dancehall artist Malie Donn in August, Ayetian in July, Lady Lava in June and Lu City in May.
