WOMEX has announced a new partnership with Radio Banda Larga (RBL), a community radio platform with hubs in Barcelona, Turin and Berlin, to extend and reimagine the WOMEX Radio Studio at this year’s edition.
The WOMEX Radio Studio has traditionally served as a hub for professional broadcasters, co-run with the EBU and local partners (depending on the location), producing high-quality content for national and international radio distribution. The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) is the world’s leading alliance of public service media with 115 Member organizations in 57 countries and an additional 33 Associates in Asia, Africa, Australasia and the Americas.
The partnership with RBL will bring community radio into that space, opening it up to grassroots broadcasting alongside the existing professional programming.
“We’re honoured to join the WOMEX Radio Studio this year, joining music lovers from across the industry and around the world, as we broadcast live each day. We believe the energy and inclusivity of community radio will enrich and expand the studio, bringing different broadcasting cultures together. We hope to represent the diversity of the WOMEX community by reimagining what radio means to us all.” - RBL Barcelona.
Transforming the WOMEX Radio Studio
What began as a small experiment in a makeshift studio run voluntarily by EBU radio journalists has, over time, grown into a defining feature of WOMEX.
Today, the Radio Studio holds a proud and permanent place at the event. It offers delegates an intimate setting to get up close with artists and media professionals — witnessing live interviews, talks, and music performances as they’re recorded and broadcast to audiences worldwide.
This year, with the support of the EBU, the Radio Studio will expand both its operational hours and its scope, giving space to both established stations and independent producers.
Community radio has exploded as a grassroots media form in the last decade, building communities around the world that blur the distinction between radio maker and listener. Hosted almost entirely on the internet, stations such as NTS, Refuge Worldwide, The Lot, NOODS and RBL (among many others), have been at the vanguard of championing fresh and under-represented music to new audiences.
This edition gives us the chance to pair established media professionals and broadcasters with representatives from new media, and therefore establish an exchange that enriches both parties — and welcome many new listeners and broadcasters to the WOMEX world and incredible artists who make up the event.
About Radio Banda Larga (RBL)
Radio Banda Larga began in Turin in 2011, at the dawn of internet radio, as an ad-free station broadcasting live from public spaces. Its first broadcast went out on 25 April 2012, from the terrace of Imbarchino, a historic bar and cultural centre in Turin’s Parco del Valentino.
RBL went on to combine radio broadcasts with music events, social inclusion workshops for marginalised groups, training courses for young people, and media partnerships with other local cultural organisations. After being hosted by various cultural centres across the city, RBL settled at Via Baltea 3, now its operational headquarters in Turin, alongside its broadcasting base at Imbarchino.
Over the years, RBL has become a cornerstone of underground music culture in Turin and northern Italy.
RBL Berlin
RBL Berlin was born in 2017 when some members of the radio moved from Turin to Berlin, with an urge to continue growing RBL overseas. This urge gathered new friends and curious souls around the incredible medium of radio.
After years of nomadic radio activities around the German capital, the community web radio finally landed at Solid in October 2025 - a community, multi-functional space which hosts RBL from within a treehouse booth!
RBL Berlin supports and fosters community spaces to bring together people through the love of radio and music with events, parties, workshops, meetings and so much more.
RBL Barcelona
RBL was brought to Barcelona in 2022 by an RBL Berlin resident and friends. After immediate widespread interest in developing the community, it settled its roots in Salvadiscos — a well-loved local cultural association for music and vinyl lovers.
RBL Barcelona strives to strengthen and build both migrant and local communities, bridging the gap between the two through a wide range of community events and partnerships. With a 50/50 gender split on all lineups, inclusivity and representation are also at its core.
The hub is now an official non-profit association: Associació Radio Banda Larga Barcelona. It streams live from Salvadiscos every second Wednesday and fourth Sunday of the month.
WOMEX Radio Studio 2026
Visitors to WOMEX have always been welcome to pass by the Radio Studio and witness impromptu sessions from various artists. The space is easily accessible directly on the plaza, and will feature plenty of space for people to relax and network.
This year, the aim is to make this even more of a vital destination for delegates, with extended opening hours into the evening that will see RBL curate an evening session each day for guests to unwind after the trade fair and conference, and prepare for the showcase programme and club summit. Whatsmore, for those that can’t make it to Las Palmas de Gran Canaria this year, these evening sessions will be broadcast live on RBL. Expect DJ sets and programming from RBL regulars and WOMEX artists and guests, plus local collectives and music venues.
article posted by:Zuzanna Kleban, Piranha Arts