Overview of How Long Gone Episode 970: Muna
In this episode of How Long Gone, Chris Black and Jason Stewart talk with Naomi McPherson of Muna about summer in New York, fashion, travel perks, fitness, touring life, and Naomi’s background in San Diego and at USC. The conversation moves quickly between cultural commentary and personal stories, with a lot of humor around class, comfort, body maintenance, and the surprisingly specific rituals that come with being a touring musician.
Key Topics Discussed
Summer Heat, Style, and “Comfort” Dressing
- Chris and Jason open with a typical How Long Gone riff about oppressive Manhattan heat and what counts as acceptable clothing in extreme weather.
- They get deep into brands and aesthetics: Vuori, Alo, Lululemon, “A-Lo,” and the idea of wearing athletic gear both sincerely and ironically.
- The discussion turns into a broader joke about how different people “pull off” certain brands depending on their vibe and age.
Travel, Airline Classes, and Touring Logistics
- The hosts debate airline seat tiers, especially Delta One, comfort plus, and the changing economics of upgrades.
- Naomi explains how touring musicians often get spoiled by work travel and how that changes expectations.
- They also discuss the absurdity of modern air travel, including “three-seat” layouts that can convert into a bed and the idea of class-segregated flights for different types of travelers.
Health, Exercise, and Recovery
- Naomi talks about their current training routine, using the Jeff Nippard app and focusing on four heavy lifting sessions per week.
- The episode spends a lot of time on body maintenance: post-flight workouts, stretching, weighted rollers, and the general need to keep moving as a tall person.
- Chris and Jason both relate to the difficulty of sitting still for long periods, whether at ballets, movies, or sporting events.
Touring Life and the Reality of Being in Muna
- Naomi shares how touring works for Muna, including:
- summer festivals,
- Pride-related dance parties,
- and the upcoming full tour in the fall.
- They joke about touring amenities, hotel rooms, beds, showers, and measuring mattress widths to avoid getting cheated on room size.
- One memorable story involves a tour manager literally bringing measuring tape to check whether a hotel bed was actually a queen.
Food, Diet, and Produce Anxiety
- The group talks about eating habits, restaurant luxury, and the limits of being strict with diet while traveling.
- There’s a recurring bit about produce being contaminated or linked to a stomach virus, and the fear of green onions, cilantro, and berries.
- Naomi says they try not to get obsessive about diet because their schedule makes perfect control unrealistic.
Background, Family, and Musical Formation
- Naomi goes into their San Diego upbringing, including exposure to punk, hardcore, scene music, and a pretty specific early-2000s Southern California subculture.
- They describe:
- growing up in a mostly white environment,
- a single-mom household,
- a father who was “around” but not consistently present,
- and parents who were jazz musicians and generally skeptical of non-jazz music.
- Naomi also talks about studying:
- narrative studies at USC,
- ethnic studies,
- and performance studies focused on Blackness and queerness.
- Their early music education included classical piano, but they eventually leaned into their own interests and style.
University of Spoiled Children and LA Culture
- Naomi and the hosts joke about USC, calling it the “University of Spoiled Children.”
- They compare Los Angeles and San Diego, with Naomi arguing LA is a real city, just less user-friendly than East Coast cities.
- Naomi describes moving through school and music scenes while forming a clearer sense of identity, style, and taste.
Social Media, Attention, and Media Consumption
- Naomi says they’re on a social media break, especially from Instagram and Reddit, but still using YouTube for news and workouts.
- They mention following:
- Chris Hedges,
- Dropsite News,
- Hasan Piker roundup videos,
- and Stavi’s podcast.
- The hosts riff on the way YouTube and algorithmic content shape attention now versus the older, more self-directed internet era.
Notable Moments and Running Jokes
The “Measuring Tape” Hotel Bed Story
One of the funniest bits in the episode is Naomi describing a bandmate measuring hotel beds to make sure they were actually queen-size. The hosts are amazed by the sheer commitment to catching hotel lies in real time.
Reading on Planes
Chris gets oddly moved by seeing a younger person read a book for an entire transatlantic flight. It turns into a mini rant about screens, kids, and what counts as decent behavior in first class.
Hand Piercings and Body Mods
The group gets sidetracked by conversations about hand piercings, North West’s piercing-heavy look, and old-school punk era body mods. Naomi shares that they once tried stretching their ears in high school.
Fitness as a Shared Language
A big part of the interview is the shared language of lifting, mobility, recovery, and trying to optimize a body that tours, flies, and sits in uncomfortable chairs for a living.
Main Takeaways
- Naomi comes across as highly self-aware, funny, and practical, with a strong sense of style and a grounded relationship to fame and touring.
- Muna’s world is one of polished performance, but also constant logistics: travel, bed size, gym access, recovery, and eating on the road.
- The episode blends culture critique with personal history, especially around class, identity, music education, and growing up in Southern California.
- Chris and Jason’s chemistry with Naomi is strong; the conversation feels less like an interview and more like a very specific hangout about taste, bodies, and life on the road.
Final Promo Notes
- Naomi mentions that Muna’s album is out now.
- The tour is on sale, with fall dates ahead.
- The episode ends on a friendly, recurring How Long Gone sign-off energy: see you at the gym.