Redemption Songs | The Marshall Project

What are records? Since 2014, The Marshall Project has been curating some of the best criminal justice reporting from around the web. In these records you will find the most recent and the most authoritative articles on the topics, people and events that are shaping the criminal justice conversation. The Marshall Project does not endorse the viewpoints or vouch for the accuracy of reports other than its own.

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Marshall Project Originals

The Bootlegging, Blues Singing Star of 1930s Prison Radio

Hattie Ellis was poised for post-prison fame. Then she encountered shotcallers who didn’t value her voice.

Redemption Songs • 04.12.2026

Police Used Mac Dre’s Music Against Him. In Jail, He Used the Phone to Get Revenge.

In his signature trickster style, the Vallejo, California, rapper recorded an album on jail phones — and even called out cops by name.

Redemption Songs • 04.05.2026

Redemption Songs: The Music of Mass Incarceration

Redemption Songs is a limited-run newsletter that spotlights one song each week made by people in prison. Spanning almost a century, we’re telling the story of mass incarceration, one song at a time.

Redemption Songs • 03.22.2026

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