Jools Topp, one half of Aotearoa New Zealand’s iconic duo The Topp Twins, has died following a 22-year journey with breast cancer.
Julie (Jools) and her twin sister Lynda entertained people across the country for more than four decades, performing as a country music and comedy duo.
One of the defining legacies of their long career is the way they used their platform to combine entertainment with political activism.
Their songs and characters raised awareness of important political issues throughout the country, particularly in rural and working-class communities.
As proud lesbians and members of the LGBTI community, they pioneered queer visibility at a time when few public figures were open about their sexuality.
They first became involved in the women’s liberation movement in the 1970s and strongly advocated for homosexual law reform. They also championed issues such as Māori land rights and anti-racism as well as the Nuclear Free New Zealand campaign.
More recently, they toured the country to raise funds for the NZ Breast Cancer Foundation.
Jools’ family announced her death in a statement, saying that she lived bravely with breast cancer and that it was important to her that her illness was not described as a “battle” or “fight”.
Former Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern was one of many who paid tribute to her: “You can’t really describe an icon, but you can thank them … With so much gratitude for all you did for Aotearoa, New Zealand.”
Jools’ surviving twin Lynda attended the Aotearoa Music Awards in Tāmaki Makaurau/ Auckland, on May 28. She characteristically used the platform to deliver an emotional speech that honoured her sister and blasted the country’s right-wing government.
Earlier that day, the National coalition government issued its 2026 Budget, cutting funding to the Arts by $27 million (A$22.2 million) while raising defence spending by $3.5 billion (A$2.9 billion).
“When we performed 40 years ago, there were hundreds of venues in this country. We played in cafes, in pubs, rural halls, woolsheds, house parties. And now we’ve lost so many of those places for young artists to perform in,” Topp said.
“We need support for artists in this country. We need a government that says the Arts is more important than a defence budget.”
She then directly addressed Paul Goldsmith, Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage, who was in the audience.
“I’ve got a message Paul … I’d like you to take a message back to Wellington. I did a speed read on the budget this afternoon. There doesn’t appear to be any money for music. But in big, big letters in the top of the news, $2.1 billion for defence. What the fuck?”
Lynda ended her defiant speech with a tribute to her sister.
“Right now, it feels like the whole country is grieving for my beautiful twin sister. And I thank Aotearoa for that, for that beautiful support that we have.
“And maybe governments and future governments can take a leaf out of our book. Because, if you give back, you get back 110%.
“So tonight, in the honour of my beautiful twin sister, who I will never ever, ever stop missing, be strong, never give up, play your instrument loud and sing at the top of your lungs and remember that music makes us human.”