August 21, 2026  | By Katrin Bennhold |
Good morning, world. It’s another August Friday, which means it’s time for a taste of another excellent newsletter. This week, we’re bringing you The Amplifier.
You know how so much of what we listen to these days is determined by Spotify and YouTube suggesting music based on past listening habits? Think of The Amplifier as an alternative to the algorithm — a real, live human who helps you discover songs you’ll love.
Today’s human is Reggie Ugwu, my awesome colleague on the Culture desk. Below Reggie shares his favorite tunes for what he calls “Lizard Season.” What is Lizard Season? Read on.
Also:
| Russia’s attacks on Ukraine get deadlier Why Harry and Meghan are going back Friends who found out they are sisters |
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| Vincent Tullo for The New York Times |
Music to help you savor what’s left of summer
By Reggie Ugwu
About this time last year, with the sun loitering lazily above us, I wrote about embracing the sublime intensity of Peak Summer. We declared it Lizard Season — a climactic stretch of July and August that calls for “welcoming the sun’s sweet, hot sting against your skin; leaning into the melt; basking in the too-muchness, knowing that one day soon there won’t be nearly enough.”
As September nears and our hours of sunlight dwindle, it’s a good idea to spend as much time outside as possible. Savor each available ray of precious, life-giving energy while you can.
Need help? We have a soundtrack for you.
As I did last year, I’ve assembled 10 new songs (released in the past year or so) from up-and-coming artists that capture the spirit of Lizard Season. They make a journey from hammock-swaying indie rock (Way Dynamic) to windows-down, Y2K-revival pop (Lolitah, Gabriel Jacoby), to sweat-the-pain-away dance music (Joshua Idehen, Tomora). Aural vitamin D. (Readers in the Southern Hemisphere, you can enjoy now or revisit in a few months).
1. Way Dynamic: “Miffed It”
On this instant, endearingly self-deprecating calling card, the Melbourne-based singer-songwriter Dylan Young delivers marvelous melodies and a lullaby vocal performance that will inspire justified comparisons to Nick Drake. Listen on Spotify or YouTube.
2. Victoryland: “No Cameras”
A shot of golden-age, indie rock effervescence from the outstanding debut full-length album by Brooklyn’s Julian McCamman. A line from the chorus, “My heart is a room with no cameras in it,” which doubles as the album’s title, playfully alludes to both the chambers of the organ and an internal space you can’t see inside — a rarity in an age of presumptive self-exposure. Listen on Spotify or YouTube.
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| Lime Garden performing in Southwold, England, last month. Kieran Frost/WireImage, via Getty Images |
3. Lime Garden: “All Bad Parts”
A promising four-piece from Brighton, England, brings the goods on this cheeky charm offensive about love’s delusions that thrives on a sauntering bass line and anthemic hook. Listen on Spotify or YouTube.
4. Charlotte Day Wilson featuring Saya Gray: “Lean”
Float away on a bed of dreamy, alternative pop/R&B by two rising singer-producers from Toronto. Listen on Spotify or YouTube.
5. Lauren Auder: “yes”
Negative vibes dissolve upon contact with this ode to agreeability (featuring a superlative hook) from Auder, a husky-voiced British French singer and producer. Listen on Spotify or YouTube.
6. Namasenda: “Love Island”
This fine slice of synth-pop escapism (named after the summer dating competition show/internationally franchised fever dream) from a Swedish former PC Music affiliate patiently builds to one of the most euphoric crescendos I’ve heard in a long time. (Turn off your crossfader to fully experience it.) Listen on Spotify or YouTube.
7. Lolitah: “Bounce”
The London singer’s self-assured single — which sounds like a lost file from early millennium Neptunes sessions with Kelis or Mýa — feels destined to galvanize prom dance floors and sunsets on the beach alike. Listen on Spotify or YouTube.
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| Gabriel Jacoby in Nice, France, last month. Valery Hache/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images |
8. Gabriel Jacoby featuring Tom. G: “bootleg”
Continuing the Y2K love, Jacoby — a Tampa, Florida-raised, R&B/neo-soul singer-producer — channels the iconic kick-drum and guitar of Justin Timberlake’s “Like I Love You” on this party starter brimming with salt-rimmed Southern swagger. Listen on Spotify or YouTube.
9. Joshua Idehen: “Don’t Let It Get You Down”
The infectiously optimistic British Nigerian poet and songwriter teams with the Swedish producer Ludvig Parment on this potent audio protein for sweat-heavy Peloton sessions or after-hour raves. Listen on Spotify or YouTube.
10. Tomora: “Somewhere Else”
Light-footed whimsy blends with steely-eyed resolve on a vintage Euro club jam with a cathartic climax from the Norwegian singer-producer Aurora and Tom Rowlands, one half of the Chemical Brothers. Listen on Spotify or YouTube.
For more: What is 2026’s song of the summer? The “Popcast” podcast breaks down the contenders. You can also email us with your picks!
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| The New York Times |
| MORE TOP NEWS |
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| After a Russian strike on Kyiv yesterday. Roman Pilipey/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images |
Russia’s attacks on Ukraine get deadlier
At least 15 people were killed and about 40 injured in Russian strikes yesterday on Ukraine’s capital, Kyiv, which also damaged 30 residential buildings, a school and a children’s hospital, according to Ukrainian officials.
Moscow is taking advantage of Ukraine’s depleted stock of interceptors and is intensifying attacks, worsening the civilian death toll. It opened the assault yesterday with a volley of ballistic missiles, instead of sending drones to tie up air defenses. The change in tactics is a sign that the Russian military is growing more confident.
| OTHER NEWS |
| Trump’s threat of “tremendous economic consequences” for any nation that does business with Iran could affect U.S. trade partners.A court in China sentenced the billionaire founder of Evergrande, the collapsed property giant, to life in prison.The Middle East has seen its biggest surge in Somali piracy in more than a decade. Some experts worry that regional instability is setting the stage for a comeback.A remote region of Colombia is facing deeper hardship after last week’s earthquake. Our photographer, Federico Rios, joined aid flights to Chocó. Watch his video. |
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| Click to watch. The New York Times |
WHAT ELSE IS HAPPENING
| Just last year, Prince Harry said he couldn’t imagine ever bringing his family back to Britain. What changed?A Belgian university suspended the academic who publicized plagiarism allegations against Jason Arday, pending an investigation.A once-secret son of Prince Laurent of Belgium was legally recognized by his father at 26, and is now a prince himself. |
TOP OF THE WORLD
The most clicked link in your newsletter yesterday was about Trump’s most devoted aide.
| SPORTS |
Tennis: The U.S. Open, which begins on Sunday, will have a prize pool of $101 million, up from $85 million last year.
| CHART OF THE DAY |
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| The New York Times |
A boom in E.V. sales
Electric car sales are on track to hit record highs this year, a spike spurred by the oil shock from the war in Iran. An estimated 29 percent of all new cars purchased around the world are expected to be fully battery-powered models or plug-in hybrids. That’s up from just 4 percent in 2020. The surge is particularly strong in France, South Africa, Australia, Colombia and South Korea.
| MORNING READ |
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| Meena Geltink and Minal Tijssen. Marta Fiorin/Reuters |
Meena Geltink and Minal Tijssen were teenagers when they met at an event for adopted children. Both were born in India and grew up with adoptive families in the Netherlands. They quickly struck up a friendship but drifted apart in adulthood.
Fifteen years later, the women reconnected after learning from a genealogy website that they were sisters separated at birth. Read more about their reunion.
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| AROUND THE WORLD |
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| Laetitia Vançon for The New York Times |
Whirling for 7 days and nights
Sema, the spinning form of prayer made famous by the so-called whirling dervishes, dates back more than seven centuries. In its best-known iteration, the ritual is performed by men accompanied by musicians in choreographed ceremonies.
But an event in Turkey last month was open to all and led by a younger generation. Participants whirled nonstop over seven days and nights, with no fewer than two people spinning at any given time. Many saw sema as part of a big-tent spirituality that encompassed Buddhism, yoga, astrology, shamanism and other traditions. Take a look.
| RECIPE |
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| Andrew Bui for The New York Times |
This fruity version of frejon, a popular dish in Lagos, Nigeria, combines beans with coconut yogurt to become as creamy as a smoothie. Spread it into a gingersnap crust with layers of fresh mango and whipped coconut cream to create a dessert that may remind you of banana cream pie.
