- event type:WOMEX 26 Conference Session
- date:24 Oct 2026
- time:11:00 - 11:45
- city/area:Gran Canaria, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria
- venue:Conference Room 1
- country:Spain
- event posted by:Piranha Arts
Links
Chaired by
Emily Dust (UK), Bandcamp radio / Dances For Buildings;
with
Steve Happi (Cameroon), Jail Time Records
This year's Professional Excellence Award goes to Jail Time Records, founded in 2018 by visual artist Dione Roach and DJ/producer Steve Happi (Vidou H). In New Bell Central Prison in Douala, Cameroon, incarcerated artists record hip-hop, trap, drill and Afro-house in the prison studio and film professional-quality videos in its halls and yards. The label also produces photo and film reportage, including an acclaimed documentary released this year. It has since expanded to Ngoma Prison in Douala and MACO prison in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, and its Douala studio helps former prisoners reintegrate. Happi, who will be in conversation with Emily Dust, calls Jail Time an "instrument of resistance."