HONG KONG, January 3rd
“Shirley and Friends – A New Year Charity Concert” concluded Saturday evening at the Methodist International Church HK, uniting performers and audiences in this New Year charitable celebration.
Event flyer
The concert focused on global girls’ education issues. Organized and hosted by15-year-old singer Shirley, the concert featured her vocal teacher, Chinese lyric coloratura soprano Li Yang, along with artist friends from multiple countries.
Shirley is hosting the concert
The concert aimed to showcase music as a bridge between East and West while highlighting the importance of youth leadership in charitable causes. All proceeds will be 100% donated to the United Nations Girl Up project to support girls’ education in developing countries.
Shirley expressed her vision in her opening remarks.
“These girls have the same dreams I do, but they don’t have the same opportunities. Tonight we used music to light hope, but real change requires sustained attention and action,” she said.
A Calling She Couldn’t Ignore
Shirley’s passion ignited during her studies in the UK, where she encountered a statistic that changed everything: millions of girls worldwide are out of school, with most denied education by poverty, early marriage, and gender discrimination.
“I couldn’t stop thinking about it,” Shirley said. “I had everything while girls my age were denied even basic education. I knew I had to do something.”
The answer lay in combining her two passions: music and education. In 2025, she registered Girls Rise Global as a Girl Up affiliate. Over the past several months, she has designed a long term plan to help those girls, and the most critical element for enabling this plan is to bring funds for supporting those girls.
Shirley and her friend are performing at the concert
The January 3 concert represented Shirley’s most ambitious undertaking yet. She managed everything — from conceptualization and guest recruitment to venue coordination, volunteer management, and hosting — while juggling her academic commitments.
The evening featured over a dozen performers who rallied behind her cause. Girl Up, the
beneficiary of all concert proceeds, is a United Nations Foundation campaign that has reached over 120 countries, providing education, healthcare, and protection for girls in developing nations.
The Power of Collective Commitment
While Shirley led the initiative, the concert’s success reflected collective dedication.
Her teacher, Li Yang, provided crucial guidance throughout. The invited musicians donated their talents because they believed in the cause. Shirley’s young friends devoted countless rehearsal hours, understanding their performances served a purpose beyond personal achievement.
Li Yang is performing at the concert
“Everyone could have been doing something else,” Shirley said. “But they chose to be here because they believe every girl deserves the chance to learn and grow.”
Organizing the concert tested Shirley beyond any classroom. “There were so many moments when things went wrong,” she admitted. “Scheduling conflicts, last-minute changes, coordinating across time zones.” What sustained her was remembering those millions girls without access to education.
Action Over Words
For Shirley, January 3 marks a beginning. She envisions expanding Girls Rise Global’s reach, organizing more events, and building a network of young people committed to educational equity. The raised fund will be donated to Girl Up for purchasing learning resources and supporting the girls who are education deprived. In addition, Shirley has planned to host additional fund raising events to enable various learning opportunities for those girls, such as offering workshops, scholarships or remote learning.
“Music can cross borders and languages to convey love and hope,” Shirley told the audience. “Tonight we used music to light that hope. But real change requires sustained attention and action.”
The invited musicians are performing at the concert
Shirley believes that caring isn’t enough. Impact requires action, persistence, and the courage to turn conviction into reality. For her, this isn’t charity—it’s justice. “Education transforms everything,” she emphasized. “It’s about giving girls control over their lives and dreams.”
Shirley poses with her teacher and guest performers
About Girls Rise Global
Girls Rise Global is founded by 15-year-old singer Shirley. It’s a London-based community organization under Girl Up, a United Nations Foundation initiative dedicated to advancing girls’ education, leadership, and empowerment in developing regions.
Website：https://www.girlriseglobal.org/
INSTAGRAM: girl_rise_global
