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“Let’s go, Open your eyes, Open your mind to her dream. Let’s go, fight for what’s right, fight for her life."

The inspiration for these funk-rock lyrics? HeForShe.

Carl & the Reda Mafia, a young, dynamic, award-winning Dubai band, wrote the song “Fight for Your Queen” as a direct call to men to fight for gender equality. As they told UN Women: “HeForShe is a movement we have looked up to since its inception. The idea of men fighting for women’s rights is something we truly believe in and support.” Lead singer Carl Frenais, who is from India, introduced the campaign to the band. He has been very passionate about fighting against the horrifyingly violent crimes against women in his home country. 

We got over 500 men to pledge to support the movement. Even those who were afraid told us they support it.

They’re taking their passion to the people. On Jan. 17, 2015, the band performed in downtown Dubai to introduce the HeForShe campaign to the community. Before the performance, where they rocked out in front of a HeForShe backdrop, the band members set up a HeForShe board and a place where men could pledge their support for the cause. They personally campaigned, explaining to each person they approached what HeForShe stands for. Some locals came forward, but some hesitated, fearing it might cause problems with the authorities.

A lot of that hesitation melted away once the band took the stage. As they performed, the band rocked and rallied a growing crowd. Says Carl proudly, “In every gap between the songs, we talked about the campaign and what HeForShe stands for. In the end, we got over 500 men to take photos with the HeForShe board and pledge to support the movement. Even those who were afraid told us they support it. We planted a seed in them that day, and they’ll never forget it.

“Our campaign for this cause has just begun,” he continues. “Once the music video that contains the footage of the event is released and the media gets involved, we will be able to take our campaign to a whole new level.” The band believes that “if a change has to be made, we need all of humanity to fight for the same cause. We want to do our best to make this happen.”