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If you follow both pop music and politics, you may have to choose which you’re going to watch live on Tuesday, Sept. 10 – the first presidential debate between former President Donald Trump and VP Kamala Harris or the 2024 MTV Video Music Awards.
Trump agreed to the debate on Thursday (Aug. 8), after initially saying he wouldn’t appear. In response, Harris said on X, formerly Twitter: “I hear that Donald Trump has finally committed to debating me on September 10. I look forward to it.”
The Sept. 10 debate will air on ABC. David Muir, anchor of World News Tonight, and Linsey Davis, anchor of the Sunday edition of that broadcast, will moderate the session. That’s the same date that Trump and President Joe Biden had agreed to their second and final debate, before Biden’s decision to withdraw from the race.
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The first debate of the 2024 general election between Trump and Biden was held on June 27. Biden’s performance was so shaky that even friends and allies urged him to bow out of the race. Less than one month later, on July 21, he announced that he wouldn’t run again and endorsed Harris for the nomination.
There may or may not be additional debates between Trump and Harris. Fox News has proposed a debate on Sept. 4, and NBC News is hoping to host one on Sept. 25. During an appearance in Michigan, Harris said she was “happy to have that conversation” about additional debate(s).
MTV announced Sept. 10 as the date of the 2024 VMAs way back on April 24 – but apparently “dibs” don’t count for much in the high-stakes world of presidential politics.
The VMAs will air from UBS Arena in New York at 8 p.m. ET/PT. (So, depending on what time zone you live in, you may be able to watch both live.) The VMAs will be held just four days shy of the 40th anniversary of the inaugural VMAs at Radio City Music Hall. (That show aired three full weeks before the first debate between President Reagan and former vp Walter Mondale, so there was no conflict.)
This is the second time this summer that a newsworthy event in presidential politics has collided with an awards show. An attempt on Trump’s life occurred on July 13, less than two hours before the Kids’ Choice Awards was scheduled to get underway in Santa Monica, Calif. The awards went on as scheduled, with no mention of the stunning event.
Bon Iver took the stage at Kamala Harris and Tim Walz’s campaign rally in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, on Wednesday (Aug. 7), drumming up support for the Democratic presidential bid before captivating the audience with a mellow cover of “The Battle Cry of Freedom” on guitar. In a clip from the rally posted by Harris’ headquarters […]
If you see a camo-print baseball cap with orange lettering in the wild, it could mean one of two things: The wearer is either a Chappell Roan fan or a voter supporting Kamala Harris and Tim Walz’s 2024 White House bid — unless, of course, they’re both.
Shortly after the sitting VP announced that the Minnesota governor would serve as her running mate, the duo unveiled campaign merch that instantly reminded some people of an item in the “Good Luck, Babe!” artist’s store: a woodsy trucker hat with a neon orange message over the brim. Harris and Walz’s version simply reads their names, while Roan’s says “Midwest Princess,” as a reference to her Billboard 200 top 10 album The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess.
Upon seeing Harris’ new apparel, Roan simply tweeted Tuesday (Aug. 6): “is this real.”
The LGBTQ+ singer also retweeted someone’s joking comment, which read, “How gay do u have to be to see hunting colors and think it’s a Chappell roan thing.”
Billboard has reached out to a rep for Harris for comment.
For the record, the hat — whether or not it’s a purposeful nod to Roan — is very much real. The item is currently available for $40 on Harris’ campaign website, which reads, “You asked, we answered … The most iconic political hat in America,” digging at the red “Make America Great Again” caps worn by Republican opponent Donald Trump’s supporters. Purchasing the hat counts as a donation to the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee’s Harris Victory Fund.
Roan’s tweet comes about a week after she took the stage at Lollapalooza, drawing an enormous crowd that a spokesperson told CNN was the biggest turnout to a daytime performance that the Chicago event has ever seen. The Missouri native has been on a roll with her headline-making festival performances this year, attracting unanticipated numbers to her sets at Coachella, Boston Calling and Gov Ball.
Speaking of her Gov Ball set, Harris and Walz may have to go the extra mile to add Roan’s endorsement to their growing list of musical supporters. The “Hot to Go” singer previously called out the Biden-Harris administration during her time on stage at the New York City festival, claiming to have turned down the White House’s request for her to perform at its Pride Month celebrations.
“We want liberty, freedom and justice for all,” she said at the time. “When you do that, that’s when I’ll come.”
See Roan’s tweet about the Harris-Walz hats below.
As one of the most influential stars in the world, Taylor Swift has many Americans on the edges of their seats as they wait to see whether the 14-time Grammy winner will endorse Kamala Harris‘ 2024 campaign for president.
And though she has yet to come forward with her support, some fans think Swift may have just subtly hinted that she’s on the Democratic nominee’s side. That’s because a Harris-like silhouette appears in the background of a photo the 14-time Grammy winner posted Tuesday (Aug. 6) of her Warsaw Eras Tour performances at PGE Narodowy, walking in the opposite direction upstage wearing a pantsuit and giving a presidential wave.
Swift didn’t acknowledge the ambiguous female figure in her caption, instead simply thanking her “beautiful crowds” in Poland “for making us the first tour to play 3 nights in a row in your stadium!!” A source close to the pop superstar told The Hollywood Reporter that the shadowy figure was simply the silhouette of one of the background singers, something that appears regularly in Swift’s show.
Still, several fans took to social media to speculate that the photo was the “Anti-Hero” singer’s quiet way of giving Harris her stamp of approval.
“Taylor Swift just low key endorsed Kamala Harris and MAGA is losing their minds,” one person wrote on X, while another fan tweeted, “It really feels like it should be a bigger deal that Taylor Swift left a shadow of Kamala on her Instagram post but I don’t really see anyone talking about it.”
“TAYLOR!!! Tell me more about this pic on IG from Warsaw?!?!” a third person tweeted. “We all know TS is amazing with her breadcrumbs… hope the deliberate posting of this pic hints at what #SwiftiesForHarris are hoping for!”
One fan wrote, “Taylor Swift casually dropped this photo to endorse Kamala Harris why is NO ONE talking about this 😭😭😭.”
If she did intend to back Harris with her post, Swift would be one of many musicians to join the sitting VP’s cause. Cardi B, Lizzo, John Legend, Ariana Grande and many more have also posted in support of the candidate, while Megan Thee Stallion performed at Harris’ Atlanta rally earlier this month. Quavo spoke at the same rally, and — as first reported by Billboard — Bon Iver is set to take the stage at her upcoming campaign stop in Wisconsin.
It also wouldn’t be the first time Swift has aligned herself with Harris and the Democratic party. In 2020, the musician endorsed Joe Biden’s White House bid and revealed she’d be cheering on his then-running mate during the vice presidential debate — an event for which she showed off a tray of Biden-Harris sugar cookies. “Gonna be watching and supporting @KamalaHarris by yelling at the tv a lot,” Swift tweeted at the time.
That said, other fans weren’t so quick to take Swift’s recent post as the “Karma” artist endorsing Harris — not yet, anyway. “It’s not a Kamala endorsement,” one person wrote on X. I promise when Taylor endorses her, the entire world will know. She won’t be subtle about it. 😂😂😂”
As the nation focuses on Tim Walz, the newly named vice presidential running mate of Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris, a look into his record as Minnesota’s governor reveals that he recently signed a bill designed to protect concertgoers from junk fees and fraud. This past May, Walz signed a bill that increased transparency for […]
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Vice President Kamala Harris is expected to announce that Gov. Tim Walz of Minnesota will join her on the campaign trail as her running mate, according to campaign insiders. Analysts and observers alike positioned Gov. Tim Walz and Gov. Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania as the front runners, and now the hard work begins ahead of the November elections if the chatter remains true.
Vice President Kamala Harris has made a meteoric shift from supporting President Joe Biden in his reelection bid to now running her presidential campaign with tons of momentum. In recent weeks, Walz has made the rounds on several cable news shows appealing to the Democratic Party base, some who felt President Biden was no longer up to the task. Walz staunchly defended Biden on his record while dressing down his Republican Party opponent, Donald Trump.
With the base energized behind Harris, the potential Walz announcement thus far has gained wide appeal among pundits and it gives stability to the campaign despite it coming together fairly swiftly. According to CNN, the news is all but confirmed and Harris has promised that she will announce her pick on Tuesday (June 6).
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A former educator, Walz is currently in his second term as Minnesota governor and chairs the Democratic Governors Association. He previously served 12 years in Congress, representing a conservative-leaning rural district that, both before and after his tenure, has been mostly dominated by Republicans.
In the time leading up to his selection as Harris’ running mate, Walz had first been an outspoken defender of Joe Biden following his disastrous debate performance as calls for the president to end his reelection bid escalated. When Biden did drop out, Walz endorsed Harris the next day and has since emerged as a reliable, energetic and cutting advocate for the presumptive Democratic nominee.
While some felt that Gov. Shapiro was a lock considering his time rising the ranks in Pennsylvania politics, Walz presents a different sort of energy in a campaign that will need all the firepower it can gain against the widely popular Trump.
That said, Walz has already introduced talking points that appeal to swing voters, progressive voters, and those who feel the Democratic Party has been too passive in countering the vitriol that emerged from the Trump campaign.
One of Walz’s most significant contributions to the Harris campaign came when he labeled Trump and his running mate, Sen. JD Vance of Ohio “weird dudes” and the tag has stuck much to the chagrin of conservative pundits and the GOP alike.
On X, formerly Twitter, the reaction to the news regarding Gov. Tim Walz has gone viral. We’ve got the best reactions below.
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Photo: Getty
Election season is in full swing with just over three months (92 days, but who’s counting?) until Election Day. Donald Trump appeared on internet personality Adin Ross’ Kick stream on Monday (Aug. 5), where he entered the building to 50 Cent’s “Many Men” as his soundtrack of choice.
The Get Rich or Die Tryin’ anthem has become a rallying cry of sorts for Trump in the wake of last month’s assassination attempt. Trump steps into the venue to the menacing track co-produced by Eminem, and greets the supporters in attendance — most of whom are rocking red Make America Great Again caps and holding pro-Donald Trump signs.
Of course, 50 references himself being shot on “Many Men” and the G-Unit boss himself leaned into all the viral memes, which resulted in a boost to the 2003 album on the charts.
“How is this real life?” a fan asked on X.
In the streaming week following the assassination attempt on Trump in Pennsylvania (July 12-July 18), “Many Men” registered 6.4 million official U.S. streams in the tracking week, which is 224% higher than the 2 million total streams in the prior frame.
During the stream, Ross had Trump comment on various political leaders and pop-culture figures including Ye (formerly Kanye West) and Young Thug.
“He’s a very complicated,” Trump said of West. “Let’s say complicated because he is. He’s a really nice guy, but he can get some people into trouble. And he can get some other people. He’s got a good heart — he does, he does, but he’s complicated.”
Trump and West have plenty of history dating back to DT sending well wishes to Ye and Kim Kardashian when the couple tied the knot in 2014. West said he would’ve voted for Trump in 2016, and paid 45 a visit at the White House in October 2018. The Graduation rapper rocked a MAGA hat on Saturday Night Live in 2018, and then went on to face-off with Trump and Joe Biden in a failed 2020 presidential election bid.
The twice-impeached former president even gave his thoughts on Young Thug’s much-delayed YSL RICO trial and called for the incarcerated rapper to be “treated fairly” by the Georgia legal system. “I hear Young Thug — I heard the name, I heard it from other people where they say he’s being treated unfairly. He’s gotta be treated fairly,” he demanded on Ross’ stream.
Thug — born Jeffery Williams — has been behind bars since May 2022 and there is no end date in sight for the YSL trial. According to NBC News, it’s the longest trial so far in Georgia’s history.
Less than a week after she passed the delegate threshold needed to become the Democratic presidential nominee, Vice President Kamala Harris is kicking off a battleground state tour alongside her yet-to-be-announced running mate — and she’s bringing along Bon Iver for the ride. Billboard can exclusively report that, Bon Iver will join Harris and her […]
Megan Thee Stallion is getting something off her chest and laying it to rest. Though her performance at Kamala Harris’ kickoff campaign rally in Atlanta was met with lots of praise, others criticized the rapper for not taking a more conservative approach — something she addressed during her headlining Lollapalooza set Thursday (Aug. 1). “Let […]
John Farnham‘s classic Australian anthem “You’re The Voice” has become the centerpiece of a viral video supporting Kamala Harris‘s presidential campaign.
The stirring track, which has been a staple of Australian culture since its release in 1986, is now resonating with American voters as Harris steps into the spotlight as the Democratic Party’s presidential candidate.
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While Harris’s official campaign released its first video on July 25 featuring Beyoncé’s 2016 song “Freedom,” it’s the unofficial clip set to Farnham’s inspirational anthem that has social media talking.
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The video, created by the social media user @politicsusa46, has garnered over 140,000 views at the time of writing. It begins with a montage of Donald Trump’s most controversial moments before transitioning to uplifting footage of Harris, accompanied by Farnham’s powerful vocals.
Australians quickly took to the comments of the video. “As an Aussie, it’s brilliant to see John Farnham and ‘You’re the Voice’ being used in Kamala’s ads. Fits perfectly,” one person wrote on X, while another added, “Wow! This song is practically our second national anthem Down Under.”
This isn’t the first time “You’re the Voice” has been used in a political context.
The song was notably used to advocate for the “Yes” campaign in the 2023 Australian Indigenous Voice referendum, with Farnham’s full support. However, it was also unofficially played at anti-lockdown protests in Melbourne, Australia during the COVID-19 pandemic, a use that Farnham’s manager publicly condemned.
Meanwhile, the singer has kept a low profile following his cancer diagnosis in 2022, during which he underwent an 11-and-a-half-hour surgery to remove a cancerous tumor from his mouth. The procedure was followed by eight weeks of radiation therapy.
One year after the marathon surgery, Farnham received the all-clear from his doctors and described himself as “the luckiest man alive.” “I’m home now, and I’m a very grateful and happy man,” he shared. In March 2023, the singer was hospitalized again for treatment of a respiratory infection, from which he recovered two months later.
John Farnham’s “You’re The Voice” was an international hit upon its release in 1986.
It reached No. 1 in Australia and performed well across Europe, including No. 6 in the U.K., No. 3 in Ireland, No. 1 in Sweden, No. 6 in Switzerland, No. 4 in Austria, No. 9 in Denmark, and No. 10 in West Germany.
It debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 on Feb. 10, 1990, peaking at No. 82 on March 3, 1990, and spending eight weeks on the chart. The song also reached No. 13 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart. Heart’s 1991 cover version of the track reached No. 20 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks chart.
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