MUNA will begin their upcoming tour without bandmate Naomi McPherson while they care for their terminally ill mother.
The indie pop trio – featuring Naomi, Katie Gavin and Josette Maskin – announced on Instagram on Tuesday that the guitarist and synth player will miss at least the first five shows on their Gets So Hot tour to be with their mother Harriet.
“Tragically, Naomi’s mother Harriet has been suffering for some time now from an extremely aggressive and terminal form of cancer that has escalated in severity over the past few weeks. Now, it has become clear that her passing will coincide with the beginning of this headline tour,” they wrote.
“As a result, Naomi has been at home with her for her final days and will be staying behind after we depart in order to take care of her affairs after her passing.”
The Silk Chiffon hitmakers hope Naomi will be back for their show in Philadelphia on 25 September, but this is subject to change.
“This means that as of now, Naomi will be missing our shows in Phoenix, Dallas, Austin, Nashville, and Atlanta. It was important to Naomi that the shows happen with or without them, and so plans have been in the works to ensure this,” they continued.
Musician Lou Roy will fill in for Naomi, who uses they/them pronouns, until their return. It is currently unclear whether Naomi or Lou will perform at All Things Go Music Festival on America’s East Coast at the end of this month.
“This is one of the hardest things we’ve gone through as a band, but through it all we are feeling so lucky that we have this big beautiful family of the band, the crew, and all our amazing fans,” the band added. “Thank you for giving our lives so much meaning and for supporting us as we face this.”
MUNA’s Gets So Hot tour will wrap up in Europe in November.
