Interview: GUNNAR Talks SUNFADED, Touring, and Finding Strength After the Fires

Hey everyone! It’s Jackie with Muah Music Media. We had the opportunity in New York City ahead of the incredibly talented GUNNAR's Mercury Lounge show on October 17, 2025 on the Upside Down tour!

If you’ve been following his journey, you know GUNNAR’s been crafting some of the most emotionally honest and sonically fresh pop tracks out right now, from his debut project Best Mistake to his newest project, SUNFADED, released in June, that’s had fans totally hooked.

We caught up before the show to talk about his creative process, what performing live means to him, and everything happening behind the scenes of this tour. 

JACKIE:

We’re here in New York City with GUNNAR, welcome back! How are you feeling heading into tonight’s show?

GUNNAR: 

Really excited. I'm a bit nervous. Tonight's going to be - I hope - a really special show, so I'm trying to keep that in mind without putting too much pressure on it.

ALLIE:

What does a typical show day look like for you? Do you have any pre-show rituals, or things you do to get in the zone?

GUNNAR:

My vocal warm-ups kind of put me in the zone because I have to lock in for those. And then, honestly, just get backstage or wherever it is before we start going and put my in-ears in and just lock in. No crazy ritual.. You know, I'm pretty boring haha.

JACKIE:

You’ve mentioned before that you write a lot, sometimes even hundreds of songs. When you’re in that creative zone, how do you know when a song feels real enough to keep working on?

GUNNAR:

If you hear it the next day and it still clicks and feels good to you, I think that's a really good test. And you just continue to do that at scale. You know, you never make an album in a day. You're making a song a day for a month, you have 30 songs. By the time that you get to deciding the music, there's going to be songs that just don't resonate with you anymore after a few days or a few weeks. There's going to be songs that still hit every time, so that's just how I base it.

ALLIE:

Your music blends heartfelt songwriting with such clean pop/rock production. How do you balance vulnerability with making something people want to move to?

GUNNAR:

I think I just write all different sorts of songs. Then, when it comes to crafting a project, you pick and choose specific songs so that, as you said, they have all of those elements. It's not like I go into the studio and I'm like, okay, today we're going to write this. Usually, we just kind of see what happens. And by the end of it, I've always just tried to incorporate a little bit more honesty and vulnerability into the songwriting. It's usually at the end of making a project when you're deciding the songs that are going to make the album. You also consider having those slow, vulnerable, kind of emotional songs and then obviously having the upbeat tempo, fun dancing songs.

JACKIE:

You’ve talked about the push and pull between chaos and clarity, especially around your Upside Down era. What does that idea mean to you personally now, compared to when you started writing it?

GUNNAR:

I guess when I grew up, I used to think success in life and happiness in life is when things are steady. I think the more that I've grown up and experienced life, the more I realize that the ups and downs and push and pull of life is really where living is. You know, you learn so much about yourself and you grow so much, and life will never be steady and still. 
So I just think it's adapting and learning to love that.

ALLIE:

So from Best Mistake to now, how do you feel you’ve changed, not just as an artist, but as a person living through the highs and lows of this career?

GUNNAR:

I mean, I've grown a ton since Best Mistake. I think that song was a really big moment for me to push away from pop music and do something that I really wanted to do. I think that's kind of me rebelling from what I was thrown into at such a young age. 
And then the truth is, sometimes, it's a corny line. Sometimes you've got to set something free. You know, if it loves you, it will come back. And if you love it, it'll come back. 
And for me, that was the incorporation of pop music in what I do. I had to push really far away from it and wrote and toured a rock album. Then, I think it really helped me come back to realizing that I love having pop music elements and having the choruses that people want to sing along to and move to. I think all of that is super important. 
So, yeah, I think it's just more of a life experience take on why I made the music I did.

JACKIE:

Alright, on a more uh depressing note...

GUNNAR:

Love it.

JACKIE:

I wanted to touch on something that I know has been really difficult, earlier this year, your home was lost in the Palisades fires. 

GUNNAR:

Yup.

JACKIE:

I’m so sorry that happened. I’m from LA too, and I know how deeply those fires affected so many families and communities. 

GUNNAR:

Yeah. 

JACKIE:

How have you been coping since then, and has that experience changed the way you approach music or life in general?

GUNNAR:

100% it changes the way I approach life. The things that you care about, you just realize don't matter as much. 
You know? I mean, I went through hours of stupid conversations about what color I'm going to paint the wall and, you know, furniture, and just stupid shit that, at the end of the day, can disappear in a moment. So that's changed the way that I just approach life.

I've been getting through it, I think, okay. I think in the beginning, it was really tough, and you know, like anything, the art of staying alive is about fucking just taking that stuff on the chin and rolling with the punches and trying to, you know, just to get through it.

There are good days, there are bad days, but that is inevitably getting through it. It'll still hit me, you know, sometimes, where memory will come back or whatnot, and it sucks. But slowly, I think, with time the hard moments get fewer and farther between. 
And then, you just keep going. It's been something that everyone there is in together, so many people in California are in together, so it's hard to make it about myself, you know? I mean, it was so many people.

ALLIE:

Well... On a happier note... 

GUNNAR:

Haha.

ALLIE:

New York crowds have a reputation for being loud and passionate. What makes performing here different from anywhere else?

GUNNAR:

I mean, New York is fucking New York. I think it's going to be a really packed show, and I mean, New York people bring different energy. It's like people in New York are not afraid to let their hair down and scream a little bit, and that's super nice. I'm excited to give that energy right back.

JACKIE:

Is there a fan interaction on this tour that really stuck with you, maybe something that reminded you why you do this?

GUNNAR:

100%. I had a girl come tell me that one of my songs saved her life, which is a really heavy thing to receive, but I don't think it did. I think it just kind of helped her understand that her life is worth living. Just seeing people travel from so far away to come see a show at such a small level is so special to me. 
It's so cool…

ALLIE:

When you’re on stage, is there a song that hits differently every night, one that maybe surprises you in how the crowd reacts...

GUNNAR:

Yeah.

ALLIE:

Or how you feel performing it?

GUNNAR:

"Dirty Blonde" is a really fun one to perform right now. Some shows, it does really well, some shows it doesn't do as well. It really depends on who saw me at Jaden [jxdn/Jaden Hossler], because it was the last song of the set, I really remember that. "Dead of Night" is really interesting. Some people have loved that one. Sometimes it hasn't hit as well, but to be honest, it all hits different, because I've never had my own crowd like this, so it's really pretty cool.

JACKIE:

You’ve accomplished a lot already, what’s one thing you’re manifesting for the next year? That could be creatively, personally, or career-wise.

GUNNAR:

I'm manifesting just growth. This tour has been so eye-opening for me and so exciting, and kind of really re-lit a fire in me. What I would hope over the next year is just that everything grows with that fire in me. You know, fanbase-wise, streams, being able to tour more, that kind of stuff. That is what I hope the next year looks like.

ALLIE:

If you could collaborate with any artist right now, someone who would push you creatively, who would it be and why?

GUNNAR: 


I'd say Yungblud would be a really, really good artist to, like learn from in the studio and watch do his thing... Yeah.

ALLIE:

We both love him. 


JACKIE: 

When people walk out of your shows, or finish listening to your music, what’s the one feeling you hope they take with them?

GUNNAR:

Desire to come back. Desire for it to not be over. Satisfaction, you know. Nothing crazy other than just like... A lot of these shows are people's first time seeing me, and I like to impress people and let the show speak for itself.

But really, you know, I want to earn people's respect, and I think there's a ton of artists and musicians who have really good songs and who stream really well, are viral, and have a really awesome and privileged ability to be able to go play big shows. And, not that they don't earn it because they absolutely do, but I think my story is just different, where it starts with the live show. That just means I have to kind of fight for everyone in the crowd, I feel a little bit harder each night.

ALLIE:

Okay. So we did get a few fan questions. 

GUNNAR:

You don't know me.

ALLIE:

What’s your favorite outfit to wear on stage?

GUNNAR: 

I'm a pretty simple guy. I mean, like, everyone, oh, Gunnar, the layers, you gotta wear layers. 
It looks good. I'm like, it's hotter than shit up here.

JACKIE:

You gotta strip the layers. 


GUNNAR:

Yeah. 

ALLIE:

Hahaha.

GUNNAR:

Okay, great. Like, I'm gonna wear a jacket for one song. 
Is everybody happy?

ALLIE:

And then you're going to take it off and it's just going to be *sweat*. 

GUNNAR:

I'm excited for tonight's fit. 
I got leather pants on and a good flannel. The budget's not crazy for costume and design, so we're just rocking with what I got.

ALLIE:

I don't think anything can beat the bedazzled belt from Baby's.

GUNNAR:

That thing was 25 bucks on Amazon.

JACKIE:

And then our last question for you is.. How was the writing/recording process for Sunfaded different from your previous projects?

GUNNAR:

I just was so sure of everything. The actual process was very similar. But, every session, I was so sure about what I wanted to make, and that was a really good thing. That's what made it different.

JACKIE: Gunnar, thank you again for taking the time to chat with us here at Muah Music Media.

Everyone reading — if you haven’t already, stream Upside Down on all platforms and catch him on tour while you can. You won’t want to miss this live energy in person.

I’m Jackie with Muah Music Media — stay tuned for more exclusive artist interviews, concert coverage, and all things music discovery. See you at the next show!

To see the photos from the show:

While it has been nearly a year since the Eaton and Palisades fires affected thousands, many families are still needing help getting back on their feet.

Wildfire Relief Links:

Additional Support Links: