LONDON — Chris Black and Jason Stewart of podcast “How Long Gone” have brought their pandemic hit to London.
The pair hosted a live podcast show at 5 Carlos Place, Matchesfashion’s townhouse in Mayfair, with Alexa Chung joining them as a surprise guest.
As the podcast nears 500 episodes, its fanbase has been growing globally. Outside the townhouse, the crowd was just as busy as during a fashion week party, and fans patiently waited before being let inside.
The podcast’s guest stars have included Lee Pace, The 1975 and Orville Peck and Phoenix.
Related Galleries
“Being able to chat with such interesting people, some of which we have looked up to for years, still surprises us. We have listened to Cat Power since we were teenagers, so having her be so open, honest and warm with us was memorable and a reminder of why we do this in the first place,” Black told WWD.
“We want to talk to Martha Stewart, Juergen Teller, Deon Cole and Liam Gallagher, not at the same time, but in general, we want to keep having engaging, funny conversations with people who do great stuff,” he added.
The collaboration with Matchesfashion started a while back when the duo worked on a small project with the luxury retailer.
This time around, with the rising popularity of the podcast, Black and Stewart starred in a Matchesfashion editorial shot in Los Angeles with photographer Jack Bool and stylist Karolyn Pho.
During the live talk, Black joked that his knee caps had to be moisturized due to being “ashy.”
On stage, the pair didn’t hold back from being their usual comedic selves — they mocked British cuisine, questioned Chung’s Instagram feed, interacted with the audience and discussed illegal substances.
The success of the podcast has led to Black and Stewart signing with talent agency CAA, which represents Annie Leibovitz, Cate Blanchett, Lupita Nyong’o and more.
Black’s recipe for success is “consistency; we do the show three times per week, which with other projects, and you know, life, is a lot. But it builds a strong relationship with the listener. They are invested in us, our lives, and our opinions on culture, current events and Los Angeles grocery stores.”