Miley Cyrus Revived Her Instagram Show to Talk to Kamala Harris
Steve Granitz; Lorenzo Bevilaqua, Getty Images
Miley Cyrus’ Instagram Live show Bright Minded has been on hiatus for a bit, but she brought it back for the best reason we could possibly think of right now: to have a candid chat with Democratic vice presidential nominee Senator Kamala Harris.
The “Midnight Sky” singer first launched her talk show back in March, with the intention of “connecting with special guests discussing how to stay LIT in dark times” via FaceTime. Her guests have run the famous-people gamut, from Demi Lovato to Hilary Duff to Selena Gomez, but we would deign to say that Senator Harris is her most significant guest to date.
Over the course of the 16-minute conversation, Cyrus and Harris touched on fittingly meaningful topics, including the impact of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, the climate crisis, racial injustices in the healthcare system, and how to remain hopeful during these (to use an overused, but appropriate, phrase) unprecedented times.
Less than two weeks out from the presidential election, Harris especially stressed the importance of exercising our right to vote as a means of ensuring our voices are heard.
And in instigating political change and “forcing accountability,” young people, in particular, have huge amounts of power, she said.
"I strongly believe that when we look at the extension of that civil rights movement from the '60s that my parents marched in, through to the movement that is happening today and people taking to the streets, I think what we know is that the engagement and the willingness of all leaders, but in particular our young leaders, to push forward change and to demand it is really critical," Senator Harris said. "And it is critical that they are at the table. I feel very strongly about that, and I know Joe Biden feels very strongly about it.”
Harris also explained what a Biden-Harris administration would look like, which includes a focus on job creation, student loan forgiveness, and reforms to the criminal justice system—like decriminalizing marijuana, ending cash bail, requiring police accountability, and creating a national registry of police officers who break the law.
And if there were any question about Harris’ stance on Donald Trump, Harris quickly cleared that up. After calling out Trump’s refusal to condemn white supremacists during the first presidential debate—and actively galvanizing neo-Nazis with the directive to “stand back and stand by”—Harris said: “There is no question that Donald Trump is awful on this issue, and many other issues.”
Yet another thing we and Harris agree on: Her music choices. When Cyrus asked what’s on Harris’ playlist to “get pumped up for the vice presidential debate,” Harris shared that her walk-on song is “Work That” by Mary J. Blige. (But she loves “Party in the USA” too, of course.)
