{"id":314074,"date":"2026-03-05T09:55:09","date_gmt":"2026-03-05T09:55:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/314074\/"},"modified":"2026-03-05T09:55:09","modified_gmt":"2026-03-05T09:55:09","slug":"topp-twins-honour-jools-breast-cancer-battle-with-otis-frizzell-peace-mural","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/314074\/","title":{"rendered":"Topp Twins honour Jools\u2019 breast cancer battle with Otis Frizzell peace mural"},"content":{"rendered":"

When approached for comment on what they were filming for, the duo\u2019s manager and Diva Productions director, Arani Cuthbert, said the project was under wraps at this time.<\/p>\n

But in a statement provided to the Herald, the twins said the timing of the mural felt particularly poignant, given the conflict and war in the world right now. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe loved working with Otis on giving one of our favourite songs a new expression at this volatile time. While the world does not need another war, we also need to stand up for what is right and use words, not guns.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"ArtistArtist Otis Frizzell created the piece, which can be seen in Ponsonby. Photo \/ Supplied<\/p>\n

The pair, who were inducted into the New Zealand Music Hall of Fame in 2008, say the words are also ones of courage as Jools continues to live with Breast Cancer.<\/a> <\/p>\n

\u201cOur message is also very personal about staying positive while living with cancer,\u201d said Lynda.”<\/p>\n

Jools was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 2006 at the age of 48. After undergoing chemotherapy and a mastectomy, she went into remission, but it was later revealed in March 2022 that her cancer had metastasised, leading her to undergo further treatment. <\/p>\n

\"ToppTopp Twins Linda and Jools. Photo \/ Getty Images<\/p>\n

During this time, Lynda revealed on TVNZ\u2019s Sunday that she had also been diagnosed with breast cancer and was undergoing treatment. <\/p>\n

Speaking of the sisters\u2019 courage and the opportunity to honour them, Frizzell said he didn\u2019t hesitate for a second.<\/p>\n

\u201cI love the Topp Twins. They\u2019re bloody national treasures. So what am I gonna say when they ask me if I want to graffiti up a beautiful, brick Ponsonby building with a piece that speaks to bravery and an anti-war message in these troubling times? \u2018Where are my spray cans?\u2019 That\u2019s what. <\/p>\n

\u201cThe twins carry real mana. They have always had courage and protest in their songs and hearts and I consider it an honour to be part of their story.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"TheThe piece is located at the corner of Ponsonby and Richmond roads. Photo \/ NZ Herald<\/p>\n

The Herald honoured the Topp Twins in 2022<\/a> as their overall Herald Hero winners for Entertainment. The duo, who grew up in Huntly on a farm, credited their upbringing for shaping them into who they are today. <\/p>\n

Lynda said throughout their career, they never felt worried their political views or sexuality would see them judged by Kiwis.<\/p>\n

\u201cNew Zealand just sort of said, \u2018Wow, those twins are great. They\u2019re funny. They make us laugh and they\u2019re political\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n

From Springbok tour protests to the nuclear-free rallies of the 80s and many homosexual law reform marches, \u201cwe were there pretty much for every protest that was on in New Zealand that was important\u201d.<\/p>\n

Lynda also shared a time<\/a> the twins planned to get arrested for \u201cstanding our ground,\u201d but that plan was quickly quashed by pals.<\/p>\n

\"TheThe Topp Twins. Photo \/ Supplied<\/p>\n

\u201cI remember a friend yelled out \u2018You two get back over there, please. You\u2019re gonna have to sing at the Glue Pot to raise money for all the people who get put in jail tonight\u2019.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo a lot of people knew our politics. They knew that we were lesbians. They knew that we were proud of who we were.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think eventually if you just hang in there and you say, \u2018this is who I am, and I\u2019m proud to be who I am,\u2019 in the end, New Zealanders will respect you for it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jenni Mortimer is the NZ Herald\u2019s chief lifestyle and entertainment reporter. Jenni started at the Herald in 2017 and has previously worked as lifestyle, entertainment and travel editor.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"When approached for comment on what they were filming for, the duo\u2019s manager and Diva Productions director, Arani…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":314075,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[1628,5837,2831,2534,31100,170563,3024,121516,156,170561,3073,305,7568,170559,170562,6096,14795,111,139,69,6379,170560,2892,9615,5424,1361,170558,1850,102],"class_list":{"0":"post-314074","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-entertainment","8":"tag-artist","9":"tag-battle","10":"tag-breast","11":"tag-cancer","12":"tag-champions","13":"tag-collaborated","14":"tag-courage","15":"tag-dames","16":"tag-entertainment","17":"tag-frizzell","18":"tag-graffiti","19":"tag-have","20":"tag-honour","21":"tag-jools","22":"tag-lynda","23":"tag-message","24":"tag-mural","25":"tag-new-zealand","26":"tag-newzealand","27":"tag-nz","28":"tag-ongoing","29":"tag-otis","30":"tag-peace","31":"tag-piece","32":"tag-street","33":"tag-that","34":"tag-topp","35":"tag-twins","36":"tag-with"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/314074","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=314074"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/314074\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/314075"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=314074"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=314074"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=314074"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}