Some speakers arrive at Cannes Lions with impressive careers.<\/p>\n
Others arrive with extraordinary stories.<\/p>\n
When Afghan rapper and activist Sonita Alizadeh took to the stage at Cannes Lions 2025, she brought both.<\/p>\n
Her story is remarkable. As a teenager, she faced the prospect of being sold into marriage – a fate experienced by countless girls around the world. Instead, she found her voice through music and transformed her personal struggle into a global movement.<\/p>\n
The result was “Daughters for Sale”, a song that would eventually be heard around the world and help change the course of her life.<\/p>\n
Alizadeh explained that creativity was not initially an obvious path.<\/p>\n
Living in Iran as an undocumented Afghan refugee, she was searching for a way to express the anger, frustration and heartbreak she felt about the stories surrounding her.<\/p>\n
She experimented with poetry. She explored pop music.<\/p>\n
Then she discovered rap.<\/p>\n
Listening to artists such as Eminem, she realised the genre allowed her to tell longer, more complex stories while channelling powerful emotions.<\/p>\n
Rap became her tool.<\/p>\n
“It was the only way for me to empty myself of the stories I needed to share,” she explained.<\/p>\n
There was just one problem.<\/p>\n
In Iran, women were not permitted to perform rap publicly.<\/p>\n
So she and her friends improvised.<\/p>\n
Using a makeshift recording space lined with egg cartons and basic soundproofing materials, Alizadeh recorded “Daughters for Sale”, a song confronting the reality of child marriage.<\/p>\n
She never expected what happened next.<\/p>\n
The song went viral.<\/p>\n
Its raw honesty, emotional power and bravery resonated far beyond Iran and Afghanistan.<\/p>\n
For Alizadeh, writing the song was painful.<\/p>\n
But it was also liberating.<\/p>\n
Once the words were out in the world, she felt free.<\/p>\n
The song would go on to become an international symbol of resistance against child marriage and helped bring global attention to an issue affecting millions of girls.<\/p>\n
Throughout the conversation, Alizadeh returned repeatedly to the idea that creativity should serve a purpose.<\/p>\n
For her, music is not simply entertainment.<\/p>\n
It is a way of telling stories that might otherwise remain unheard.<\/p>\n
When writing new songs, she said she focuses on staying close to the truth rather than worrying whether people might be uncomfortable with the message.<\/p>\n
The most important stories are often the hardest to tell.<\/p>\n
“I talk about topics that are heart-heavy and difficult to hear,” she explained.<\/p>\n
That commitment to authenticity has become central to her identity as an artist and activist.<\/p>\n
One of the most memorable themes of the session was the importance of dreaming.<\/p>\n
Alizadeh spoke about programmes she attended as a young woman that encouraged participants to imagine futures beyond their current circumstances.<\/p>\n
The experience had a profound effect on her life.<\/p>\n
Today, she works to bring similar opportunities to young people in Afghanistan, encouraging them to believe in possibilities that may seem unreachable.<\/p>\n
Dreams, she suggested, are not a luxury.<\/p>\n
They are a necessity.<\/p>\n
For young people facing difficult circumstances, the ability to imagine a different future can be transformative.<\/p>\n
The discussion also touched on how people respond to suffering and injustice.<\/p>\n
Alizadeh urged audiences to choose help over pity.<\/p>\n
People facing hardship do not need sympathy alone, she suggested. They need opportunities, education and support.<\/p>\n
They need to feel seen and heard.<\/p>\n
It was a message rooted in her own experience.<\/p>\n
The intervention of people who believed in her potential helped create opportunities that changed her life. Education opened doors. Creativity amplified her voice.<\/p>\n
Now she hopes to create similar opportunities for others.<\/p>\n
Today, Alizadeh’s work extends far beyond rap.<\/p>\n
She continues to advocate for girls’ education, women’s rights and greater opportunities for young people across Afghanistan and beyond.<\/p>\n
Yet despite international recognition, documentaries, awards and appearances on global stages, her message at Cannes Lions remained remarkably simple.<\/p>\n
Use whatever tool is available to you.<\/p>\n
For her, that tool happened to be rap.<\/p>\n
For someone else it might be writing, filmmaking, teaching, entrepreneurship or technology.<\/p>\n
The medium matters less than the willingness to use it.<\/p>\n
As the session drew to a close, Alizadeh left the audience with a powerful reminder that felt particularly relevant in a festival dedicated to creativity.<\/p>\n
Stories can change minds.<\/p>\n
Education can change lives.<\/p>\n
And sometimes a dream can become the most powerful weapon of all.<\/p>\n
Unsurprisingly, Sonita is the 2025 Cannes LionHeart Award Recipient.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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