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    People in prison explain what music means to them — and how they access it

    Three people incarcerated at prisons across the U.S. spoke to NPR's Morning Edition about how music helps them reconnect with the past, endure the present and envision the future.
    by Rachel Treisman Jan 03, 2024 6 minutes
    Many states have introduced tablets into prisons, allowing users to do things like listen to music and send messages. Several incarcerated people told NPR that while the devices aren't perfect, the ability to stream music has been a game-changer.

    Joe Garcia first heard about Taylor Swift in the late 2000's, while he was in the Los Angeles County jail awaiting trial on murder charges. He initially wasn't impressed with her music.

    Now, multiple albums and prison transfers later, he credits Swift's music with helping him get through his life sentence.

    "Taylor Swift's voice, the fairytale romance of it all, takes me back to a much more idyllic time and kind of keeps me focused on recapturing that type of sentiment as I go forward in life," said Garcia, who was convicted of murder and is eligible for a parole hearing, which is tentatively scheduled for April.

    Garcia — who counts "White Horse," "The Man" and "...Ready for it?" among his top five — detailed his journey into Swiftdom in an essay that was published in the New Yorker last fall in collaboration with the Prison Journalism Project (PJP), a nonprofit organization that trains and publishes incarcerated writers.

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