This week on Brands of the Week, Donny Deutsch and Lou Pellegrino break down the brands, trends, and cultural shifts shaping the marketplace right now — from functional beverages to nostalgia economics. Topics include: the explosive rise of mood drinks and non-alcoholic, THC-free botanical beverages; why 50-year-old song catalogs (Queen, Springsteen, Dylan) are outselling contemporary music as investment assets; the return of communal live TV watching through sports and events like the World Cup and Love Island; Anthony Bourdain's posthumous resurgence in food and travel culture ahead of the new biopic "Tony"; luxury car buyers trading down to mainstream brands as tech gaps close; Arizona State's new bachelor's degree in content creation and influencer marketing; Starbucks' banana bread latte replacing pumpkin spice as its next big seasonal flavor; the decline of the bathtub in modern home renovation; United Airlines' frequent flyer program being worth more than the airline itself; the death of paper checks in the age of Venmo and Zelle; and the rise of JOMO (the joy of missing out) culture. Plus, ICE approval ratings drop among independents, and why America is having fewer twins.

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Legendary ABC/ESPN and MSG Network play-by-play voice Mike Breen joins the show to relive the New York Knicks' first NBA championship in 53 years — from the emotional final buzzer to the alumni who finally got their ring. Breen opens up about Jalen Brunson's transformation from a doubted free-agent signing into the franchise's heart and soul, what it was like watching Patrick Ewing and the Knicks' old guard experience the title firsthand, and the behind-the-scenes chemistry that makes a broadcast booth work — including his 25-plus-year partnership with Walt "Clyde" Frazier.

The conversation also digs into the wide-open Eastern Conference heading into next season: LeBron James' surprise move, the Boston Celtics' cap-driven Jaylen Brown trade, sleeper teams like Detroit and Toronto, and why repeating as champion is one of the hardest things to do in sports.

Whether you're a die-hard Knicks fan, an NBA junkie, or just love hearing how a Hall of Fame broadcaster prepares for game night, this episode has it all.

In this episode:

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Legendary Democratic strategist James Carville joins Donny Deutsch for a no-holds-barred conversation on where the Democratic Party is headed — and who's driving it off a cliff. Carville and Deutsch dig into the rise of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), the growing rift with progressive candidates like AOC and Zohran Mamdani, and why he believes the far-left wing of the party is losing touch with Black voters, Latino voters, and the working class.

The two also break down the 2028 presidential race, Bernie Sanders' legacy, potential Democratic frontrunners like Josh Shapiro, and what a post-Trump Republican Party could look like. Carville doesn't hold back on Trump's approval numbers, the state of the U.S. economy, and his predictions heading into the 2026 midterms. Plus: a candid discussion on Israel, Gaza, Benjamin Netanyahu, antisemitism, and why he thinks Israel is "losing the messaging war" — and New York City's new tax and political climate under Mayor Mamdani.

A must-listen for anyone following American politics, Democratic Party strategy, progressive vs. moderate Democrats, the 2026 midterm elections, and the road to the 2028 presidential election.

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On Brand with Donny Deutsch — Brands of the Week: Spider-Man's Record Opening, Vincent Pastore Tribute, Chicken Crushes Beef & AI Rental Scams

Donny Deutsch and Lou Pellegrino break down the brands shaping the zeitgeist this week. Spider-Man: Brand New Day starring Tom Holland and Zendaya smashes the all-time domestic opening weekend record with a $360M debut. The team pays tribute to Vincent Pastore ("Big Pussy" from The Sopranos), who passed away at 80, with Lou sharing behind-the-scenes stories from Sirius XM's Wiseguy Show.

Plus: Pepsi teams up with beauty brand Glamnetic for a body care collab; chicken prices overtake beef as grilling-season inflation hits consumers (Chick-fil-A, Wingstop, Raising Cane's win; McDonald's and Burger King struggle); Reebok relaunches in basketball with Shaquille O'Neal and Allen Iverson; a viral rescue monkey named Punch the Monkey; Ozempic and Mounjaro linked to hair loss in a new BMJ study; the protein-maxing backlash and mTOR aging research; record back-to-school spending; a Barbie 2 contract standoff with Margot Robbie, Ryan Gosling, and Greta Gerwig; AI-powered rental scams on the rise; state fair food trends going viral on TikTok; and William Shatner, 95, headlining a heavy metal band at Riot Fest.

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Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan of the New York Times join Donny to discuss their bestselling book Regime Change: Inside the Imperial Presidency of Donald Trump.

They reveal how they landed remarkable access to sources still serving inside the administration, and walk through two of the book's most stunning scenes: the bizarre Oval Office moment when Trump had an aide read out a list ranking him among history's most powerful figures (alongside Napoleon, Hitler, and Genghis Khan), and the extraordinary Situation Room meeting where Netanyahu personally pitched Trump on an Iran regime-change operation — only for the CIA director to call the plan "farcical" the next day.

They dig into how a gut-driven decision led to the U.S. bombing Iran, why Trump's inner circle now trusts his instincts over expert warnings, the administration's evolving stance on AI regulation, and rapid-fire one-line verdicts on JD Vance, Scott Bessent, Howard Lutnick, Susie Wiles, Pete Hegseth, and Stephen Miller.

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Donny and Lou run through the brands shaping the week — from private equity turning bowling night into a $284 splurge, to nostalgic parents buying their kids Wi-Fi landlines to dodge spam calls and screen time. They dig into a new survey showing one in four millennials admit to shoplifting (blaming inflation), debate whether baseball needs a salary cap as a work stoppage looms, and question a Mountain Dew Baja Blast hand sanitizer that might be the next Tide Pod challenge waiting to happen. Plus: Viagra's surprising potential cancer-fighting powers, Tom Holland doing his own Fred Astaire-style dancing for an upcoming biopic, shark cage diving becoming the world's fastest-growing bucket list experience, and a genuinely good stat to end on — U.S. homicide rates hitting an all-time low.

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Stephen A. Smith joins Donny to relive the New York Knicks' first championship since 1973 — the heartbreak of Ewing, Starks, and Reggie Miller's eight points in nine seconds, finally exorcised 39 days ago.

From there, the conversation turns to politics: Stephen A. explains why he won't run for president, calls out the Democratic Party's socialist drift, and names his picks for 2028 (Josh Shapiro, Wes Moore, Marco Rubio) while explaining his distrust of JD Vance.

He also digs into Netanyahu's role in fueling antisemitism, the complicated politics around Caitlin Clark and the WNBA, and closes with a blunt take on why Trump still won't let go of the "big lie."

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Wingstop just crushed the fast-food race with 382 new locations, De Beers is getting gutted by lab-grown diamonds, and Olive Garden's $100 Never-Ending Pasta Pass is back after a six-year hiatus.

Donny Deutsch and his Executive producer Lou Pellegrino run through this week's biggest movers: a booming box office (Odyssey, the MJ biopic, Toy Story 5), Hasbro turning Monopoly into a movie, the Mickey Mouse Club reboot, a surprise CD sales boom, solo dining's 52% surge, Starbucks swapping "grande" for "medium," and Pringles' controversial hot dog buns in a can.

Plus, the debut of a new segment: Grand Brand of the Week.

Tune in Thursday for Donny's big sit-down with Stephen A. Smith.

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Batya Ungar-Sargon — News Nation host of "Batya," Free Press writer, and author of The Jews and the Left — joins Donny for a wide-ranging conversation on why the Democratic Socialists of America keep losing working-class voters despite their "working class" branding, and why Israel has become a central distraction in progressive politics. Batya breaks down the real data on antisemitism (left vs. right) and how mainstream outlets manipulate the statistics, plus Trump's economic populism, immigration and wages, the Graham Platner controversy, and the historical break between Jews and the Democratic Party going back to the 1967 Six-Day War.

Topics covered: the DSA and working-class politics, antisemitism on the left vs. the right, Israel and American Jewish identity, Trump's economic agenda, immigration policy, and the future of the Democratic Party.

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Donny Deutsch and his Executive Producer Lou Pellegrino run through this week's brand winners and losers — Hostess Twinkies' rough quarter, Reese's first new flavor in a decade, Kylie Jenner's Dunkin' collab, and a promising new use for GLP-1 drugs in treating eating disorders. Plus: a $8,000 Paris procedure to permanently change your eye color gets a hard pass, a new study pours cold water on fish oil's brain benefits, ESPN Jeopardy! is coming to Hulu with Joe Buck and John Hamm, and Michael J. Fox notches another Emmy nomination. They also dig into a startling stat on the number of young adults still living at home, debate whether Matt Damon's "The Odyssey" can justify a three-hour runtime, and celebrate Sylvester Stallone's 80th birthday and his one-of-a-kind decades-spanning box office run. All that, plus a heated take on a Stanley Cup name-plate snub and the priciest piece of Knicks memorabilia ever sold.

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