Barbra Streisand was the marquee star on Thursday night’s (Aug. 15) Jewish Women For Kamala online Zoom rally in support of the presumptive democratic presidential ticket. The latest in a series of similar digital rallies that have brought together white dudes, Deadheads, Swifties, Black men and women and several other niche voting demos drew more than 16,000 attendees according to organizers, many, no doubt, tuning in to hear what the Oscar-winning legend had to say about Vice President Kamala Harris and her VP pick, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz.

“It’s been said that Jewish women are known to speak out and tell you what they think and I’m one of them,” said Streisand, seated in a bespoke library. “I’m so tired of hearing [former President Donald] Trump put down America, saying ‘Make America Great Again’ because America has been great since 1776. And it’s still great in 2024.”

Streisand said she’s supporting Harris/Walz because she wants a president who believes we can “do anything if we work together.” She praised the democratic ticket for bringing a new sense of “optimism, energy and excitement” to the campaign since Harris stepped in for President Biden more than two weeks ago in an unprecedented switch at the top of the ticket with less than 100 days to go in the neck-and-neck race.

The singer called Harris a “terrific combination of both compassion and strength, a joyful warrior who will fight for the values that so many of us hold dear.” She went on to praise the Vice President for being a consistent advocate for programs that support gender equality, social justice and voting rights, while noting that in a recent appearance at a rally with evangelical voters Trump promised that if they voted for him just this one time, “you don’t have to vote again,” a line some took as the latest attempt from the former one-term president to erode democratic norms.

“Can you imagine?” Streisand said. “In contrast, Kamala Harris understands just what a privilege it is to be able to vote! And her commitment to health care, Social Security, education and to combatting climate change are the policies of someone who cares about the future of our country, our children and our planet… and not just the profits from big oil.”

Streisand noted that women are nurturers who take care of others and can think “beyond themselves,” while tagging Trump as someone who cares “only about himself” while insulting “any woman who questions him” by calling them “nasty.”

“I don’t think he even respects women,” Streisand said as a pivot to Trump’s appointment of several conservative Supreme Court justices who erased half a century of precedent by overturning Roe v. Wade. “I don’t know of any equivalent law giving the government control over men’s bodies,” she said of the decision that eliminated the federal right to abortion.

“Clearly in some people’s eyes women don’t count… oh but we will in November when they count the votes!,” she added with a sly smile before doing the most Barbra thing possible and taking a brief pause to sip of water from a flowered tea mug through a straw before leaning into Trump’s VP pick, Sen. JD Vance. She lambasted the first-term Ohio native for what she said are his stances that “women should stay at home,” as well as her description of what she said said was his belief that women’s careers are to blame for the nation’s “moral decline.”

“But Vance’s moral compass seems off, because he sees nothing wrong with his running mate — a convicted felon who talks about law and order — but doesn’t think it applies to him,” she said of Trump, who in addition to his 34 felony convictions in New York in his porn star hush money trial, is facing at least three other major court cases tied to his hoarding of government documents at his Florida residence and federal election interference tied to his attempt to results of the 2020 election he lost to President Biden.

She warned that Trump and Vance had given a preview of what they have in mind via their embrace of the Project 2025 blueprint from the ultra-conservative Heritage Foundation, a document that seeks to replace thousands of non-partisan federal workers with political appointees loyal to Trump while injecting conservative Christian values into government as well as eliminating the Department of Education and the Head Start program for young children living in poverty. Calling it a “naked grab for power… a blueprint for a dictatorship,” Streisand said the 900-page document is full of things that should be alarming to anyone who cherishes the Constitution.

Decrying the use of “fear and hate” to pit people against each other, Streisand described great presidents such as Washington, Lincoln and Jefferson working to bring Americans together and change the world. “This is how we make progress, not with hateful, divisive leadership,” she said, praising Harris’ compassion “for all human beings,” while criticizing Trump for what she said was his lack of “intelligence, judgement and heart.”

“Our society will flourish with a smart, experienced woman,” Streisand said in conclusion to her two-plus minute endorsement. “Who will defend our rights and send Trump back to where he belongs… in his golf cart, lying about his scores.”

Check out Streisand on the Jewish Women for Kamala call below.

There’s a new boy band in town. Friday (Aug. 16) marks the official debut of the newly formed Japanese act ONE OR EIGHT. The eight-member group — composed of Mizuki, Neo, Reia, Ryota, Souma, Takeru, Tsubasa and Yuga – is sharing its second single with the energetic “Don’t Tell Nobody” and its accompanying music video.

The song follows debut single “Kawasaki” – a hip-hop-leaning track inspired by the Japanese automotive brand of the same name – that the group posted along with its Instagram launch in June. In its first week, the performance video they shared garnered more than 6 million views. 

ONE OR EIGHT, backed by entertainment company Avex in Japan and the U.S. (with Brandon Silverstein’s S10 as the Stateside Avex partner), stands out not only for its fusion of hip-hop with pop, but also the way in which the act celebrates its Japanese culture through lyrics, choreography and the members’ streetwear-inspired aesthetic. Even its name points to the group’s roots, as it’s derived from the Japanese idiom “Ichi ka Bachi ka,” roughly translating to “all or nothing.”

“We’re thrilled to present ONE OR EIGHT as a first of its kind collaboration that combines the musical, cultural, and innovative resources between the US and Japan branches of Avex, launching a lasting mission for a new generational hybrid model to push Japanese music as a global phenomenon,” says Naoki Osada, CEO of Avex U.S.

Adds Takeya Ino, president of labels at Avex Japan: “At Avex, we embrace challenges and respect the U.S. music culture. Utilizing the creative networks we’ve built in the U.S., our members are ready to embody the spirit of ‘all or nothing’ after years of preparations.”

“Don’t Tell Nobody” was written with David Stewart and co-produced by Stewart and hitmaker Ryan Tedder.

Watch the music video below.

Amy Shark makes it three successive No. 1s in Australia with Sunday Sadness.

The Gold Coast-raised singer and songwriter cruises to the summit of the ARIA Chart, published Friday, Aug. 16 with Sunday Sadness, her fourth studio effort.

Her debut 2012 album, It’s A Happy City, released under the name Amy Cushway, didn’t chart, notes ARIA. As Amy Shark, she powered to No. 1 for one week in 2018 with Love Monster, and led the survey in 2021 for two weeks with Cry Forever.

“Words cannot explain how much this No. 1 means to me,” she comments. “Sunday Sadness has been three years in the making and I’m so glad you all love it as much as I do. Today is a day I’ll never forget”
Sunday Sadness completes a trilogy of No. 1s for homegrown acts on the national chart, burying a 10-month dry spell.

Also, it’s one of four Australian-made albums to debut in the top 20, for Australian music’s “most successful week of 2024,” ARIA claims.

“Huge congratulations to Amy, her team, and her incredibly devoted fans on a third No. 1 album and a career that continues to reach new heights,” comments ARIA CEO Annabelle Herd.

“Amy at the top of the chart marks three weeks of Aussies at No. 1, on top of that, four homegrown debuts in the top 15 is an unbelievable result that our whole industry should be proud of. What a week for Ausmusic.”

Those homegrown hits include Grinspoon’s eighth studio album, Whatever, Whatever, new at No. 3; King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard’s 26th studio album Flight b741, new at No. 8; and First Nations hip-hop collective 3%, new at No. 12.

Meanwhile, Filipino-British singer and songwriter Beabadoobee lands her first top 10 in Australia with This Is How Tomorrow Moves, new at No. 6. That bests the No. 19 peak for her 2022 release Beatopia.
Finally, DICE rolls to No. 27 with Midnight Zoo, the Perth quartet’s debut album.

Over on the ARIA Singles Chart, Billie Eilish scoops her third solo No. 1 as “Birds Of A Feather” flaps its wings, up 2-1. Eilish replaces herself on top, as her guest appearance on Charli XCX’s “Guess” dips 1-3.
Earlier, Eilish reigned over the chart for two weeks in 2019 with “Bad Guy” and for three weeks with 2023’s “What Was I Made For?.” Eilish’s third and latest studio LP, Hit Me Hard And Soft, holds at No. 2.

Finally, as Marvel’s Deadpool & Wolverine slices up the global box-office, one of the songs from its soundtrack powers into the top 40: NSYNC’s “Bye Bye Bye”. Released in 2000, the song originally spent five weeks at No. 1. Thanks to its sync to the bloody opening scene of the superhero smash, “Bye Bye Bye” returns to the chart at No. 20.