This year, we once again invited you, our community, to submit your nominations for the Keychange Inspiration Award.

The Award honours and celebrates women and gender-diverse people who have made an extraordinary and pioneering contribution to the music industry. The award winners are our role models for the next generation, and for the Keychange network of talented artists and industry professionals.

We’re thrilled to present the shortlist to you! Who will win the race and take home the Keychange Inspiration Award? We can’t wait to find out at Tallinn Music Week in April.

Ebonnie Rowe

Ebonnie Rowe is the Founder and Executive Director of Honey Jam, a national non-profit artist development programme for emerging female artists of all cultures and musical genres that provides mentoring, networking, educational, promotional and performance opportunities. For 30 years they have created a welcoming, supportive community, a sisterhood and a safe space for young women to improve their skills and knowledge, build self-esteem, and form long-lasting relationships. Alumni include artists such as Grammy Award winners Nelly Furtado and Melanie Fiona, along with Juno winners Jully Black, LU KALA, Haviah Mighty, Kellylee Evans, and Savannah Re, and many others.

Among many honours for her work, Ebonnie has been named to the Order of Canada, included in the Billboard Canada Women in Music Honours lists, received the Roy Thompson Award of Recognition and CIMA’s Trailblazer Award and was featured in the book “Canada 150 Women - Conversations with Leaders, Champions, and Luminaries”.

Prior to starting Honey Jam, Ebonnie founded and ran a mentor program for at risk black youth called Each One, Teach one, and has volunteered at many organizations since she was a child.

Erin Barra

Erin Barra is a multifaceted leader at the intersection of music, technology, education, and equity. She is the Director of the Popular Music Program at Arizona State University and the Executive Director of We Make Noise, a global nonprofit advancing gender equity in music and tech. A recognized authority in music education and innovation, she is also a longtime course developer for Berklee Online and a former Associate Professor at Berklee College of Music. As a songwriter, producer, and instrumentalist, Barra has worked with artists including Kimbra, John Oates, Res, Agnez Mo, Madame Gandhi, and Miles Robertson, combining deep musicality with forward-thinking production. She is also deeply committed to mentoring and developing emerging artists and producers, helping shape the next generation of creative talent. Her expertise in composition, performance, and creative music technology has led to collaborations and partnerships with companies such as Ableton, ROLI, Moog, iZotope, Splice, and MusicTech. A sought-after speaker and educator, she has presented at conferences and institutions including SXSW, Loop, NAMM, Moogfest, AES, and Gearfest. Across every role, Barra brings a clear focus on access, empowerment, and innovation in music.

Fofi Tsesmeli

Fo (aka Fofi Tsesmeli) is a Greek DJ, music journalist, curator, and inclusion advocate with more than two decades of continuous impact on (electronic) music culture. Widely regarded as one of the most powerful and consistent voices for gender equity and representation in the Greek music ecosystem, her work has expanded beyond national borders through international networks, collaborations and advocacy platforms.

She is the founder of HER, a pioneering initiative focused on empowering women, femininities, and underrepresented people in music through lineups, curatorial concepts, talks, and community-driven projects. HER introduced the first all-female DJ lineups in Greece and helped shift industry conversations around visibility and structural imbalance. She also serves as co-director of the Athens chapter of shesaid.so, where she develops programs and partnerships connecting the local scene with a global movement for change. Fo holds a record-breaking club DJ residency in Greece, with more than 26 years behind the decks at Sodade BackStage, a historic pillar of queer nightlife in Athens. Her DJ practice centers on intentional, community-aware dancefloors and has influenced how inclusive and safe club culture is shaped locally.

Alongside her performance career, she has a long trajectory in music media, radio, television, publishing, and rights management. Since 2014, she has been a key contributor to LiFO, producing in-depth interviews and research features on electronic music and scene history. Her practice combines culture, activism, and infrastructure. She is not only advocating for change, but actively building the frameworks that make it possible.

Jessica Lá Rel

Jessica Lá Rel is an award-winning Chicago recording artist, songwriter, and creative leader recognized for her distinctive “cinematic soul” — a sound that bridges Black American musical lineage with global diasporic traditions.

Her debut EP Four Freedoms (2016) reached #12 on the UK Soul Charts and brought her to stages before audiences including Oprah Winfrey, Rep. John Lewis, Rev. Jesse Jackson, and Sterling K. Brown. With over one million YouTube views and features in The Huffington Post, The Root, and BuzzFeed, Lá Rel has been consistently identified as a rising force in contemporary Black music. In 2018, Lá Rel launched The Sit In, a nationwide house concert tour inspired by the organizing traditions of the Civil Rights Movement. In 2025, Lá Rel released her concept album Three Sisters, exploring Black joy through the art of gardening. That same year, she founded Black & Bronze: A Bronzeville Music Fest, a multi-genre, community-centered festival designed to amplify Black artistry, honor Bronzeville’s historic cultural legacy, and expand economic and creative opportunity for artists on Chicago’s South Side. A commanding vocalist and thoughtful cultural steward, Jessica Lá Rel builds music – and institutions – that gather, inspire, and endure.

Joshua Satchell

Transpose seeks to equalise opportunities for trans, non-binary and gender non-conforming songwriters and producers, by putting them in writing rooms with top artists. In return, those top artists get the chance to work with some of the most exciting trans creatives working in music today. Trans people have often been marginalised, however the margins can be an unparalleled viewpoint to observe the world from. Trans people have to envisage a future for themselves they can’t always see, making them creative by definition. However, Trans people face significant barriers in music, comparatively to their cisgender contemporaries. In the current paradigm, as artists and music organisations have witnessed the surge in hostility towards trans, non-binary and gender non-conforming people, they have chosen to act. By supporting Transpose, their allyship shows there is no place in music for transphobia. During trans awareness week, we declared the first ever TMAD - Trans Music Awareness Day. Our hope for Transpose is that it inspires the UK music industry to ensure trans inclusion all year round.

Karina Araceli Cabrera Bernal

Mexican journalist Karina Cabrera is founder of SonoridadMX, an independent music journalism, research, and training platform. SonoridadMX was created in response to the persistent absence of women and gender-diverse people in music histories, media coverage, and industry data, and operates as both a journalistic space and a collective tool for re-learning and rewriting those narratives.

Rooted in feminist journalism, SonoridadMX develops editorial content, public conversations, courses, and workshops that provide communication professionals with concrete tools to apply a gender perspective across print, radio, and digital media. One of its most significant initiatives is the Mapa de Músicas Mexicanas, the first feminist music map in Mexico, launched in 2020 as a living archive that documents women-led and gender-diverse music projects across regions, genres, and scenes. Built through open registration and community collaboration, the map has grown into a central research resource that enables discographic tracking, scene analysis, and statistical studies. Through SonoridadMX, Cabrera’s journalistic practice has evolved into a platform for collective memory, knowledge-sharing, and structural critique, positioning community as both the method and the purpose of cultural transformation in music.

RAMPD

RAMPD (Recording Artists and Music Professionals with Disabilities) is a professional consultancy group and networking platform amplifying Disability Culture and inclusion within the music industry. RAMPD's Mission is to equip the music, sound, and live entertainment industries with the tools needed to empower working music

creators and professionals with disabilities, neurodivergence and other chronic or mental health conditions. Through career development, innovative partnerships, impactful discussions, and educational resources, we champion representation, equity, and an inclusive creative ecosystem.

Valentina Caudana

Valentina Caudana is a musician and producer from Argentina based in Denmark. As founder of MUSA, she is an activist for gender equity committed to supporting and strengthening artistic communities, creating networks and projects that foster a more just, diverse, and humane music industry.

Inspiration Award 2026 – The Shortlist Is Set