Singing contest in Rio prison provides creative outlet for women behind bars

RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — A group of Brazilian women behind bars applied makeup, donned gowns and competed in a singing contest held on Friday in a Rio de Janeiro prison, during an event designed to spotlight talents and boost confidence ahead of the detainees’ release.

Within a vast, echoing multipurpose hall, the fifteen candidates took turns to sing their hearts out on a purple-themed stage in front of an audience made up of prison officials, volunteers and fellow detainees, who clapped and sang along with them.

Many performed gospel songs, while others offered interpretations of MPB, the acronym for Brazilian popular music in Portuguese — including “Black Sheep” by the much-loved, late singer Rita Lee.

A panel of jurors composed of actor and TV presenter David Brazil and singer Maurício Mattar, among others, watched carefully, attributing scores for voice, performance, presentation and charm.

Fernanda Fernandes Domingues, 36, won the first prize. “I don’t even know what to say, I’m really happy!” she said. “Music is a way of empowering myself in this sad time, because being in prison is sad.”

Months before the big day, the candidates from four detention facilities auditioned, rehearsed and ran makeup, costume and hair tests, adding variety and stimulation to a repetitive prison routine.

The day of the competition, known as “Voice of Liberty,” the women prepped in a room complete with mirrors and a dressing screen by vocalizing and shaking their arms to release nervous energy.

Rilary Cristina Leite, 31, used to sing in bars, at parties and at church before being arrested six years ago. She is due to leave prison in less than a year and said that the show was an opportunity to help her along the path of rehabilitation by showcasing her skills.

“It’s magical because we’re doing what we want. It means liberation for us. We’re in prison and art liberates us,” Leite said, adding that her dream is to sing at the Rock in Rio festival.

This year's competition, with the theme of “hope and emancipation,” was the third organized by Rio de Janeiro’s state prison administration authority.

Maria Rosa Lo Duca Nebel, Rio’s state secretary for penitentiary administration, said the objective of prison is also to rehabilitate through work, studies, reading and — like on Friday — through culture.

It also helps with the atmosphere within the facility, she said.

“This helps calm things down, in the sense that it eases the tension, because the prison system — even though this is a women’s unit — is an environment that’s tense by nature. What we’ve provided here, with everyone’s presence, creates that sense of relief,” she said.

Cassiane Victoria Moura Martins won last year’s show. She has been singing since she was three and used to perform on the radio and other public spaces.

She stopped after being incarcerated for involvement in drug-trafficking, but picked it up again thanks to the contest and aspires to sing professionally. She plans on making videos for TikTok once she exits the facility.

“When I sing, I feel at peace. It’s kind of like a calming medicine. I need it. So I sing, and everything is OK.”

Follow AP’s Latin America coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/latin-america

An inmate performs on stage in the Voice of Freedom rehabilitation program singing contest at the Djanira Dolores de Oliveira women's penitentiary in Rio de Janeiro, Friday, Jan. 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Silvia Izquierdo)

Inmates warm up their voices backstage as they prepare to sing in the Voice of Freedom rehabilitation program singing contest at the Djanira Dolores de Oliveira women's penitentiary in Rio de Janeiro, Friday, Jan. 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Silvia Izquierdo)

Inmate walk to the stage to compete in the Voice of Freedom rehabilitation program singing contest at the Djanira Dolores de Oliveira women's penitentiary in Rio de Janeiro, Friday, Jan. 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Silvia Izquierdo)

Inmates get ready backstage to sing in the Voice of Freedom rehabilitation program event at the Djanira Dolores de Oliveira women's penitentiary in Rio de Janeiro, Friday, Jan. 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Silvia Izquierdo)

Inmates wish each other good luck before competing in the Voice of Freedom rehabilitation program singing contest at the Djanira Dolores de Oliveira women's penitentiary in Rio de Janeiro, Friday, Jan. 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Silvia Izquierdo)

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — A new round of U.S-brokered talks between Russia and Ukraine planned for this week has been postponed because of war in the Middle East, according to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

Meanwhile, the United States and its allies in the Middle East are seeking Kyiv’s expertise in countering Iran’s Shahed drones. Russia has fired tens of thousands of Shaheds at Ukraine since it invaded its neighbor just over four years ago, Zelenskyy said. Iran has responded with the same type of drones to joint U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iranian targets.

The Iran war, now in its sixth day, has drawn international attention away from Europe’s biggest conflict since World War II. Western governments and analysts say the Russia-Ukraine war has killed hundreds of thousands of people, while there is no sign that yearlong U.S.-led peace efforts will stop the fighting any time soon.

“Right now, because of the situation around Iran, there are not yet the necessary signals for a trilateral meeting,” Zelenskyy said late Wednesday. “But as soon as the security situation and the overall political context allow us to resume that trilateral diplomatic work, it will be done.”

Various countries, including the United States, have approached Ukraine for help in defending against Iranian drones, Zelenskyy said. He said he has spoken in recent days with the leaders of the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain, Jordan and Kuwait about possible cooperation.

Ukrainian assistance, he said, will be provided only if it does not weaken Ukraine’s own defenses and if it adds leverage to Kyiv’s diplomatic efforts to stop the Russian invasion.

“We help to defend from war those who help us, Ukraine, bring a just end to the war” with Russia, Zelenskyy said.

Ukraine’s army has recently pushed back Russian forces at some points along the roughly 1,250-kilometer (750-mile) front line, according to the Institute for the Study of War.

Localized Ukrainian counterattacks liberated more territory than Ukrainian forces lost in the last two weeks of February, the Washington-based think tank said this week, estimating the recovered land at about 257 square kilometers (100 square miles) since Jan. 1.

Follow AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

A Ukrainian soldier of the 48th separate brigade launches a reconnaissance drone in Kharkiv region, Ukraine, Wednesday, March 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Andrii Marienko)

A Ukrainian soldier of the 48th separate brigade launches a reconnaissance drone in Kharkiv region, Ukraine, Wednesday, March 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Andrii Marienko)