Noah Kahan a sad boy with a hopeful sound Viral Vermont singer-songwriter delights packed Canada Life Centre crowd By: Eva Wasney Posted: 11:14 PM CDT Tuesday, Apr. 2, 2024

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If you’re Noah Kahan, all you need is an acoustic guitar and a microphone to elicit a powerful live concert experience.

Kahan is the biggest pop artist you may have never heard of.

Hailing from small town Vermont, the folk-tinged singer-songwriter struck gold on TikTok with the 2022 release of Stick Season, his third studio album and a viral soundtrack for countless videos on the platform. He has since amassed billions — yes, billions — of streams on Spotify and has collaborated with the likes of Post Malone, Kacey Musgraves and Hozier. Last year, he was nominated for Best New Artist at the Grammy Awards.

While he’s been releasing music since he was a teenager, the scruffy 27-year-old has successfully made the jump from social media sensation to celebrated mainstream musician, leading to sold out stadium shows around the world — as was the case in Winnipeg Tuesday night.

Despite floor tickets for Kahan’s We’ll All Be Here Together Tour approaching $500 a pop, Canada Life Centre was packed with young flannel-wearing fans eager to sing along with their online idol. And sing along they did — to every single song for nearly two hours straight.

Wearing a white tee and oversized work shirt with his hair done up with a pair of French braids, Kahan bounded onto the stage with an awkward wave. He was joined on stage by a five-piece band and was supported from the stands by a 10,000-member choir belting out every lyric from the very first verse of Dial Drunk to the end of Stick Season, his third encore and a natural closer.

The entire audience stood throughout the show and moved as one entity; clapping and stomping without being cued, swaying together with hands on hearts during quiet moments, roaring with collective laughter at the headliner’s brash between-song banter.

For someone experiencing a meteoric rise, Kahan has managed to maintain an air of “regular guy.” If he wasn’t basking in the glow of the spotlight, he’d be hard to pick out in a crowd. It’s a brand of trustworthy celebrity buoyed by the intimacy of social media.

His down-to-earth persona is only part of the appeal. The content of his music is both deeply personal and widely relatable, making it highly marketable.

Strumming along at the front of a stage framed by giant macrame ropes and a mountainous backdrop, Kahan trotted through anthems about mental health, small town angst, therapy, overconsumption and lost love.

He’s a sad boy with a hopeful sound fit for running through the woods, late night drives and campfire jam sessions. He’s revitalized the “stomp-clap” sound of his predecessors The Lumineers and Mumford & Sons — but with fewer suspenders, an equal amount of banjo and a little more edge.

Half-way through the show, Kahan moved to a tiny mid-stage rimmed with glowing lights for the deep feels of Growing Sideways.

The production value benefited from small touches, such as mood shifting stage lights and a light sprinkling of false snow during Northern Attitude, a ballad about growing up in the New England cold. The show ended with a flurry of orange and red confetti a la autumn leaves.

While social media scrolling can be an isolating experience, Kahan’s music has tapped into a generational desire to scream-sing through the bad times. In a concert setting, it translates to a night of mass catharsis.

Opener Jensen McRae eased into the campfire vibes with a soft, strummy set highlighting the depth of her wide-ranging indie pop vocals.

Wearing a long floral dress and backed by a two-piece band, the 26-year-old Los Angeles-based singer-songwriter and poet tuned her guitar and chatted casually before launching into a handful of gauzy songs off her debut album, Are You Happy Now. The subdued crowd came alive for her last song, Christian Bale, offering the first of many co-ordinated flashlight waves of the evening.

eva.wasney@winnipegfreepress.com

X: @evawasney