Warning: This article contains spoilers for The Last of Us, episode 3 “Long long time.”
Episode three of The Last of Us showcased the love story between Bill and Frank and has brought fans to tears. Alongside the show’s storytelling, the episode featured songs that played in the background that help support the episode’s storytelling of this loving relationship set in the middle of the apocalypse. So it’s no surprise that there are calls to give one song featured in the show the “Kate Bush effect.”
‘Long Long Time’ isn’t just the name of the episode. It is also the name of the song that was originally performed by Linda Ronstadt and Bill and Frank in the show. The song was released in 1970 and there are now calls to give this song a streaming boost after it was featured in the show. Fans believed that Ronstadt deserves the same recognition as Kate Bush when ‘Running up that Hill (A deal with God)’ was featured in Stranger Things and immediately went viral.
Some believe that the “Kate Bush effect” is slowly happening right now. As of writing, ‘Long Long Time’ currently has over 8 million streams on Spotify and reached number 5 in the iTunes music charts. Meanwhile, the song currently received over 1.6 million views on YouTube, filled with comments that referenced the recent episode. A 15-year-old upload of Ronstadt’s live performance of the song also caught the attention of fans and currently sits on over 14 million views.
Unfortunately, gatekeepers have emerged who aren’t keen to see their favorite artist trend, just like how Taika Waititi was against Kate Bush’s newfound popularity.
Episode Three of The Last of Us was described as one of the “biggest deviations” from the original source material. The show changed the backstories of Bill and Frank and shared an hour-long love story. At the same time, showrunner Neil Druckmann described “Long Long Time” as “the happy episode,” and teased fans who were emotionally invested.
It’s currently unknown if Ronstadt would receive the same level of treatment when Bush went viral in 2022. But thanks to the show, her song has introduced younger fans to another iconic singer.
Episode Three of The Last of Us is available to stream on HBO Max, with new episodes coming out weekly.