In this follow-up episode, we sit down with Matt — the husband of our Canadian prison wife from last month — to pull back the curtain on what incarceration actually looks like in Canada. Matt explains how Canada eliminated solitary confinement and why that unexpected change has made prisons safer for both staff and incarcerated people. He walks us through the process for conjugal visits, the surprising “creature comforts” men receive inside, and how wages, communication, and day-to-day life compare to what we see in the U.S. From $6-an-hour work programs to unlimited, affordable phone calls, Matt gives us an honest, eye-opening look at a system that operates very differently from the one most of our listeners know.

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QTM is back — and she’s holding nothing back.
In February, we introduced you to QTM, a woman preparing to finally be with her man after his long prison stint. She walked us through their first Valentine’s Day together, their first intimate moments, and the excitement of building a life with someone who’d been gone for so long.

Now, months later, she returns with an update that’s brutally honest, emotional, and so real.

This episode dives into the actual work that comes after the homecoming: navigating new expectations, rebuilding trust, and dealing with the very human mistakes that happen when someone has been institutionalized for years. QTM opens up about indiscretions, frustrations, loneliness, and the pressure of constantly trying to keep the peace.

But she doesn’t stop there.

By the end of the episode, QTM makes a promise — not just to us, but to herself:
the next few months are about finding her identity again, creating boundaries, and learning how to love without losing herself.

If you’ve ever loved someone coming home from prison, you’ll feel this one in your chest. QTM shares her truth so others don’t feel alone walking this complicated journey.

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When we first met Sheena, we didn’t know where her story would go. What began as a typical tale of young love and bad decisions evolved into something deeply powerful. She met Joe when she was young and naive—he was the gang-affiliated bad boy, and she was drawn in. Their relationship became a cycle of chaos, addiction, and pain. When Joe disappeared, Sheena tried to move on, becoming a mother and surviving life in a trap house she barely understood.

Years later, their paths crossed again and again—each time filled with love, heartbreak, and the weight of their past. Eventually, Joe went to prison, and Sheena made the choice to walk away for good, focusing on herself for the first time. She rebuilt her life—became a business owner, a homeowner, a thriving mom. But while she was growing, so was Joe. Behind bars, he sought mentorship from elders, enrolled in business school, and began transforming himself.

From afar, Sheena watched the man she once loved evolve—and slowly, they found their way back to each other. Today, their relationship is healthy, safe, and full of mutual respect. This is the kind of story every person caught in a toxic relationship needs to hear: that choosing yourself doesn’t mean losing love—it just means making room for the right version of it.

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Trigger Warning: self-harm, torture, and mental health discussion.

In this deeply emotional episode, Crysta opens her heart about her fiancé Keith, a decorated veteran serving a life sentence in West Virginia who has spent more than a decade in solitary confinement.

She shares what it’s really like when a system decides someone no longer deserves to be seen — literally. They took away his mirror, calling it a “privilege.” His version of recreation is an indoor cage, with only a slit of air coming through from outside. For over ten years, Keith hasn’t set foot outdoors.

Despite suffering from severe mental illness and being prescribed 22 different medications, the administration still kept him in isolation — even fighting against a judge’s order that required him to get the mental health care he desperately needed. Crysta also tells of an 82-year-old man who’s been in solitary since the prison opened 30 years ago.

Keith’s story is one of pain, plain and simple. It’s also a story of love — because even through all the darkness, he brought light to Crysta’s life. She shares how beautiful of a soul he is, how deeply they love each other, and how cruel it is that she’s been denied the right to see or marry him.

This episode comes with heavy trigger warnings for self-harm and torture, but it’s one that needs to be heard. Crysta’s voice is a reminder that behind every number, every locked cell, there’s a human being — and a love that refuses to die, no matter how deep the isolation.

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In this event filled update, we reconnect with Carla to hear what’s unfolded since her engagement to Joseph — the man she calls her soulmate. But what should have been a moment of pure joy, the wedding, quickly became tangled in family conflict and heartbreak.

Carla opens up about the shocking turn of events leading up to their ceremony — including Joseph’s mother demanding money for his birth certificate and calling the warden to object to the marriage. Tragically, she passed away not long after the wedding, found in her home beside the very photos Carla had sent her.

Carla walks us through the bittersweet reality of finding love while losing family, the tense atmosphere at the funeral, and how she and Joseph are navigating their next chapter as he nears parole. Joseph even shares his thoughts and feelings through Carla, answering some of the questions himself.

It’s a powerful mix of love, loss, and resilience — a story that reminds us that even in the hardest circumstances, love still finds a way. We pray for Joseph's release in the near future and hope that one day we will all get to meet Joseph and experience these two together at last.

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This week, we’re crossing the border—north of the border—to hear a story that’s both familiar and completely different. Kelsey, a Canadian woman who married her husband while he was incarcerated, joins us to share her journey of love, loyalty, and learning what it really means to be a “prison wife” in Canada.

From how they met to navigating marriage inside a correctional institution, Kelsey opens up about the unique realities of Canada’s prison system—regular visits, conjugal visits, policies, and other differences from the American system. She also reflects on how her family and friends reacted, what support looks like on the outside, and how love can survive and thrive despite the walls.

Next month, we’ll be joined by her husband himself, who will shed more light on life inside a Canadian institution and why reintegration—and real change—seem more possible there.

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At just sixteen, Bobby Bostic was sentenced to 241 years in prison for crimes committed as a teenager—told by a judge that he would die behind bars. But Bobby refused to let that sentence define him. From within the Missouri prison system, he devoted himself to education, personal growth, and writing, publishing multiple books that reached beyond the walls meant to contain him.

In this episode, Jae sits down with Bobby to talk about how he transformed pain into purpose, how his discipline and faith led to legislative change in Missouri, and what it felt like to finally walk free after twenty-seven years. Together, they explore the meaning of redemption, the power of words, and how one man’s determination rewrote not only his own future—but the law itself.

My interview with Mansa Musa on The Real News Network

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Claire thought she was meeting someone new when she was set up on a blind date — until she realized years later (and a wedding ring), Jake, was the same man she’d met briefly a decade earlier at a college bar, the “beautiful stranger” he never stopped talking about. Their love story came full circle: they built a life together, bought a home, and dreamed of their future.

But one tragic day changed everything. When Jake went to collect his belongings from his ex’s house, Claire got the call no one ever wants — he’d been shot. What followed was a nightmare: confusion, misinformation, and media headlines that painted Jake as a criminal instead of a victim.

Now, as he faces charges for trying to enter his own home, Claire speaks out about how the system — and the public — often treat people with a record as guilty until proven innocent. She shares how damaging false narratives spread online, how judgment replaces truth, and why justice should begin with facts, not assumptions.

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