Ms Banks & BBC Team Up to #ChangetheGame Ahead of Women's World Cup

Music, when combined with sport, is an incredibly powerful thing. Music can impact our mood, our feelings, and even our opinions on certain topics.

Who recalls Jay-Z's remix of X-Ambassador's 'Jungle' ahead of the 2016 Men's World Cup? An epic tune that got the blood pumping in the build-up to that great tournament. And, with the Women's World Cup in France only a few weeks away, the BBC have teamed up with south London rapper Ms Banks to produce a star-studded trailer for the competition.

‘Change The Game’, which debuted during an episode of ‘Football Focus’ (BBC One and BBC iPlayer), features some of the world’s most famous footballers from the UK and beyond, in a series of scenes focusing on their skills, athleticism and personalities.

A re-work of the early noughties track ‘Remember The Name’ was developed, created and produced by women and with women at the forefront.

Speaking on the trailer, Ms Banks told 90min: "It wasn't hard to relate to them [the players] as women in male-dominated fields.

Image by Will Imbo

"Reading the women's stories gave me the inspiration to write the verses I did. The video and is all about empowerment - there's a fierceness about it, and it was important to match up the song to it."

Ms Banks also addressed how she thinks the perception of the women's game will change after France '19: "I think we're going to gain more respect. 

"I'm into football but I'm not crazy about it, but when I started reading about certain players - like Lucy Bronze, who had to work another job and travel so far to play when she was coming up - and what they have done to get into the position they are in now, they should be taken as seriously as any other male in football.

Catherine Ivill/GettyImages

"Hopefully, England wins [the World Cup], everyone will be happy and they'll respect the game a bit more!"

In the trailer Ms Banks captures the hunger, passion, drive and talent that forms the basis for the players’ motivations. With lines like, ‘in history her name she writes’ and ‘busting down all the doors we ain’t even putting the keys in’, Ms Banks says she hopes every woman feels 'empowered' after watching the video.

Image by Will Imbo

"I had loads of women messaging me telling me they got goosebumps watching the video, and it made them feel good. That was our whole aim - to show our strength," she added.

"So when people see the video I want them to feel empowered - whether they're doing music or football or any field you're in, we're going as hard as the men."