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From Jack Antonoff to Doja Cat to Flora Purim, this year’s Jewish Grammy nominees span every genre
(JTA) — This year’s slate of Jewish Grammy nominees offers a little something for everyone.
The nominees for the 2023 Grammy Awards, announced on Tuesday, include prominent Jewish names from pop and rap, but they also recognize Jewish musicians and writers in classical music and other less popular genres.
Here’s the full (and varied) list:
Jack Antonoff, a New Jersey Jewish day school grad who has become one of pop’s most in-demand producers and songwriters, thanks to his work with the likes of Taylor Swift and Lorde, is up for producer of the year — an award he won last year.
Doja Cat, a Jewish rapper and pop star, is up for five: including record of the year, best solo pop performance and best music video, all for her song “Woman.”
Mel Brooks, still going strong at 96, is nominated in the best audiobook category for “All About Me!: My Remarkable Life in Show Business.”
James Ginsburg, son of the late Ruth Bader Ginsburg and an accomplished classical music producer and record label owner, is up for best classical producer of the year.
Hans Zimmer, the prolific blockbuster film scorer and winner of four previous Grammys (and two Oscars), is nominated in the best soundtrack compilation category for his work on “Top Gun: Maverick.”
Randy Rainbow, the musical comedian who often mocks political figures, is up for best comedy album for “A Little Brains, A Little Talent.”
Tony Kushner, the playwright who through his collaborations with Steven Spielberg has become one of Hollywood’s most prominent Jewish screenwriters, is nominated for best musical theater album, for a revival of the 2003 musical he co-wrote with Jeanine Tesori, “Caroline, or Change.” The show features a range of music, from spirituals to Motown to klezmer.
(The soundtrack to Spielberg and Kushner’s “West Side Story” remake is also nominated in the compilation category.)
Flora Purim, a Brazilian-Jewish jazz and world music icon who is known for recording and collaborating with greats like Chick Corea and Dizzy Gillespie, is nominated for best Latin jazz album, for “If You Will,” her first solo release in over a decade.
Dan Auerbach, the frontman for the rock duo The Black Keys, is nominated in the same category as Antonoff, for his production work outside of his band. Auerbach’s father is Jewish, and the rocker noted earlier this year that he lost several relatives in the Holocaust. (The Black Keys are up for two separate awards, including best rock album for their latest, “Dropout Boogie.”)
The 65th Grammy Awards will take place Feb. 5 in Los Angeles and will be broadcast on CBS.
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The post From Jack Antonoff to Doja Cat to Flora Purim, this year’s Jewish Grammy nominees span every genre appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
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120th anniversary of the Forverts advice column “Bintel Brief”
מזל־טובֿ! דעם 20סטן יאַנואַר 2026 איז געוואָרן 120 יאָר זינט דער גרינדונג פֿון „אַ בינטל בריוו“ — דער עצות־רובריק פֿונעם פֿאָרווערטס. די רובריק איז פֿאַרלייגט געוואָרן פֿונעם גרינדער און לאַנגיאָריקן שעף־רעדאַקטאָר אַב קאַהאַן אין 1906.
כּדי אָפּצומערקן דעם יום־טובֿ ברענגען מיר אײַך צוויי זאַכן:
• ערשטנס, אַן אַרטיקל וועגן אַ טשיקאַווען בריוו וואָס איז אָנגעקומען אין דער פֿאָרווערטס־רעדאַקציע אין יאַנואַר 1949, פֿון אַ לייענער וועמעס זון האָט חתונה געהאַט מיט אַ קריסטלעכער פֿרוי
• צווייטנס, אַ פֿאָרווערטס־ווידעאָ אויף ייִדיש וועגן דער געשיכטע פֿון „אַ בינטל בריוו“, מיטן געוועזענעם פֿאָרווערטס־רעדאַקטאָר באָריס סאַנדלער און דער פֿאָרווערטס־אַרכיוויסטקע חנה פּאָלאַק.
The post 120th anniversary of the Forverts advice column “Bintel Brief” appeared first on The Forward.
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Report: Khamenei Moved to Underground Bunker in Tehran
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei speaks in a televised message, after the ceasefire between Iran and Israel, in Tehran, Iran, June 26, 2025. Photo: Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via REUTERS
i24 News – Amid tense expectation of US strike on key assets of the Islamic regime, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei was moved into a special underground bunker in Tehran, the Iran International website reported on Saturday.
The report further added that the supreme leader’s third son Masoud Khamenei has taken over day-to-day management of the leader’s office, functioning as the de facto main channel for coordination vis-à-vis the executive branches of the government and the security forces.
The report describes Khamenei’s hideout as a “fortified site with interconnected tunnels.”
On Thursday US President Donald Trump said that a “massive” naval force was heading toward Iran.
“We have a lot of ships going that direction just in case. We have a big flotilla going in that direction. And we’ll see what happens,” Trump told reporters.
“We have an armada. We have a massive fleet heading in that direction, and maybe we won’t have to use it. We’ll see,” Trump added.
The USS Abraham Lincoln, along with three destroyers, was spotted making its way to the Middle East from Asia, according to ship-tracking data.
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Israel, Syria to Finalize US-Brokered Security Deal ‘Soon,’ as ‘Developments Accelerate Noticeably’
Syria’s interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa speaks during a Ministerial formation of the government of the Syrian Arab Republic, in Damascus, Syria, March 29, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Khalil Ashawi
i24 News – Syrian and Israeli officials are expected to meet soon under US mediation, perhaps in Paris, to finalize a security agreement between Damascus and Jerusalem, a source close to Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa told i24NEWS on Saturday.
According to the Syrian source, the talks will also focus on various potential joint strategic and economic projects in the buffer zones between the two countries.
“There is very optimistic talk suggesting the possibility of even opening an Israeli embassy in Damascus before the end of this year, given the significant progress in the prospect of Syria joining the Abraham Accords,” the source said.
The original Syrian plan was limited to a security agreement and the opening of an Israeli liaison office in Damascus without diplomatic status, the source tells me. “But developments are accelerating noticeably under pressure from the United States, and specifically by President Trump, and amid growing Syrian openness.”
If Damascus manages to reach an integration agreement with the Druze in southern Syria, similar to its agreement with the Kurds in the northeast, and Israel commits to respecting Syria’s unity and territorial integrity, then al-Sharaa would be open to elevate the status of the agreement with Israel to more than just a security agreement, to also include diplomatic relations and an Israeli embassy in Damascus.
“The al-Sharaa government believes that a viable compromise to advance a peace process with Israel would include a 25-year lease for the Golan Heights, similar to the one Jordan previously signed with Israel over the border enclaves, turning it into a ‘Garden of Peace” of joint economic ventures,” the source said.
The source close to al-Sharaa also tells me that US President Trump is seeking to bring Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu and President Al-Sharaa together for a peace agreement signing ceremony.
It should be noted that Israel has repeatedly rejected returning any part of the Golan Heights, let alone the entire territory.
On another front, the source stated that Damascus intends to adopt a new local administration system based on expanded administrative decentralization to enhance participation in local communities across all Syrian governorates.
According to the source, this solution would resolve persisting disputes with the Druze, Kurds, Alawites, and other minorities. A new Syrian government is expected to be formed within the next three months, the source added.