Monday, August 19, 2024

Dems To Draw Stars, Celebs To Convention (UPDATED)

 

We observed that the Republican National Convention's pathetic entertainment lineup consisted of third rate, has-been "talent" like beer can blasting moron Kid Rock and adulterous meathead "wrestler" Hulk Hogan. Even right-wing gun humper Ted Nugent apparently wasn't interested in joining the festivities in Milwaukee last month. Same with no-shows loser Scott "Chachi" Baio, and nutty Christofascist Jon Voight.

Not that elections are won by the presence of celebrities and stars, but the Democratic Party has historically drawn the cream of the contemporary entertainment and music world, and it won't change for the Democratic National Convention which runs from today through Thursday. From CNN's reporting:

"Not since the Obama years has celebrity enthusiasm been so high, merging the world of pop culture and politics as the race to kicks into high gear with this week’s Democratic convention in Chicago.

John Legend – who performed at the 2008 and 2020 conventions – is set to headline a show Tuesday for Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker. On Wednesday afternoon, “Veep” star Julia Louis-Dreyfus is hosting a panel with the country’s eight female Democratic governors. And on Wednesday night, Joan Jett and the Blackhearts will perform at a benefit concert thrown by the Creative Coalition, a Hollywood advocacy nonprofit. Notable actors expected to attend include Tim Daly, Uzo Aduba, Anthony Anderson, Iain Armitage, Yvette Nicole Brown, David Cross, Jon Cryer, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Danai Gurira, Richard Kind, Busy Philipps and Sheryl Lee Ralph.

High-profile speakers are still being finalized, multiple sources told CNN, adding that a slew of actors will speak on the convention’s main stage. But speculation has run rampant on two stars in particular: Taylor Swift and Beyoncé."

Ah yes, Taylor Swift and Beyoncé: the much admired and followed mega stars who may be ready to endorse, if not perform for, Vice President Harris and Governor Walz sometime this week. Of course, a full-out endorsement of Harris by either one -- especially Swift to her Swifties -- would mean increased voter registrations and participation in these last few weeks of the Harris-Walz campaign. It's a marked change from a month ago, when the demographic that follows Swift seemed disengaged from President Biden's candidacy. We'll see if the DNC has any surprises on this front. Regardless, the Dem ticket is poised to have a positive bump after Thursday's final night, if the pro-Palestinian / pro-Hamas demonstrations don't mar the event.

UPDATE:  Just found out tonight's performers include Jason Isbell, James Taylor, and Mickey Guyton