It’s a well-documented fact that the United States has the highest incarceration rate in the world. But in a jail in Richmond, VA, a new rehabilitation effort is literally singing out. As a means of lifting up the voices of the human stories that are locked away, inmates are encouraged to write and record original music.

In a makeshift recording studio located within the jail, four very different imprisoned men collaborate with Grammy-winning recording artist Todd “Speech” Thomas (of the iconic activist hip-hop group Arrested Development) on a recording that reaches into their painful pasts to find ways to open new doors in their futures. Inspiring and hopeful, 16 Bars has a raw and unforgettable honesty.