Sissies, Angry Girls, Emo Queers, and Crybabies: Meet MUNA, Your New Favorite Band

LA-based synth-pop trio MUNA just dropped their sophomore album Saves the World, with the title explaining exactly what they have been doing since their debut in 2017.

Written by Ellen Daly

MUNA needs no validation, but they have received it from some of the biggest names in pop music. Harry Styles loves MUNA. In fact, they were his first-ever opener on his first-ever solo tour. Needless to say, they’re special. But what makes lead singer Katie Gavin, producer/synth player Naomi McPherson, and guitarist Josette Maskin “So Special”?

They like to tell stories. They love to connect with people. Their debut album About U tells a seamless narrative of recovering from lost love without holding anything back. Gavin puts all her cards on the table, unapologetically telling the story of her life and allowing her audience to reflect just as clearly upon their own narratives. The band has no shame ― shamelessly pop, shamelessly queer, and shamlessly themselves on and off the stage.

The trio met back in 2013 at a party at the University of Southern California, which they all attended at the time. Their musical and emotional connection was seemingly instant, and the three began playing together all the time. Their chemistry is ever-present on both albums ― the level of emotional vulnerability is arguably unparalleled in pop music and would not be possible without a relationship akin to sisterhood amongst the three.

Outside of the trio’s bond, MUNA is a movement. They’ve advocated for gender-neutral bathrooms on tour, wore “F--- TRUMP” shirts at Lollapallooza, and have overwhelmed their audience with love and acceptance at every show. Their 2016 single “I Know A Place” was released as an anthem of LGBTQ+ acceptance shortly after the Pulse shooting in Orlando, and sadly still resonates today. Since Trump’s election, the band has extended the song’s bridge to include the lines “Even if our skin or our Gods look different / I believe all human life is significant / I throw my arms open wide in resistance / He's not my leader even if he's my president,” a stabbing reminder that we need music now more than ever to keep us hopeful.

On “Saves the World,” the band somehow comes back more resilient, more mature, and more honest than ever. Mixed over a catchy synth beat, the album’s lead single “Number One Fan” begs its listeners to be their own number one fan, a clear evolution from the lyrics of their more somber, less self-assured debut album. Nonetheless, Saves the World is an emotional album, yet its beats are still perfectly danceable. The theme of longing for past love remains present, but the band seems much more aware of its independence and self-worth. Arguably the strongest track on the album is its outro, “It’s Gonna Be Okay, Baby.” Here, Katie Gavin quite literally tells her life story, reflecting on moving away from home, experimenting with drugs and communism, cutting her hair, losing friends, searching for God, and falling in and out of love. She leaves nothing off the table, allowing that raw honesty to foster a connection between the band and their audience that any artist would long for.

Listening to MUNA is a therapeutic experience. They tell the truth and hold absolutely nothing back, an act which in itself is revolutionary. Their music demands self-reflection, and in encouraging their listeners to love themselves and seek this same truth, they are, in fact, saving the world.