The vibrant streets of Antigua have wrapped up another spectacular annual Carnival celebration, with rising soca star Balo taking home one of the festival’s most prestigious honors: the 2026 Road March title. Balo’s chart-topping hit *Bang E Line* dominated playlists across every street event during the multi-day festival, cementing its status as the unofficial anthem of this year’s celebration and securing the award by a clear margin.
Official final results published by festival organizers on Tuesday confirmed that *Bang E Line* was played 101 times throughout the Carnival’s public events, a count that far outpaced every other competing track to claim the top spot. Beyond his Road March victory, Balo also earned a strong second-place finish in this year’s closely contested Soca Monarch competition, marking the artiste as one of the break-out stars of the 2026 festival.
Following Balo in the Road March rankings was the collaborative track *Gyal Sidong* from Soka Villain and Island Princess, which racked up 89 plays to take second place. Third place went to Dan Knowledge’s upbeat entry *Shake It Off*, which was played 74 times across Carnival events.
Beyond the core soca music competitions, organizers also unveiled full results for the full slate of Carnival’s popular traditional contests, spanning masquerade bands, J’ouvert celebrations, and costume categories. In the July 25 T-Shirt Mas competition, Insane Carnival claimed the overall championship title, with Myst Carnival taking first runner-up and Rebel Nation earning second runner-up honors.
For the iconic J’ouvert celebrations held on the Monday of Carnival weekend, Liberta’s Black Thing took home the award for First Band on the Road. High Voltage claimed the title of First Jam Band, while RevoBand was named Sweetest Jam Band on the Road. Chatterbox Company Ltd. secured the Best J’ouvert Troupe crown, finishing ahead of second-place Flavor FM’s One Caribbean and third-place Brewmasters J’ouvert Troupe.
In the Carnival Monday Wear Large Band category, Myst Carnival emerged victorious, with Sechuns The Band taking first runner-up and Insane Carnival placing second runner-up. The traditional Parade of the Bands, held on Carnival Tuesday, wrapped up with RT Performers Entertainment taking home the top prize in the Small Band category for their vivid presentation *Shimmer and Bling*. In the Large Band division, Sechuns The Band claimed the championship title after moving up from the Medium Band classification in 2025; Insane Carnival finished as first runner-up, with Myst Carnival taking second runner-up.
Sechuns The Band also notched an impressive back-to-back win, successfully defending its Band of the Year crown, once again outperforming Insane Carnival (first runner-up) and Myst Carnival (second runner-up). With the publication of all final competition results, Antigua Carnival 2026 has officially drawn to a close, closing out another year of vibrant soca music, colorful masquerade, and spirited community celebration for the island nation.