When the world needed him most, Noah Kahan delivered. Finally releasing his long-awaited single, “The Great Divide,” on Jan. 30, Kahan brought joy to the hearts of many. As an avid Noah Kahan lover, dating back to my obsession with him starting in 2023 when I strictly listened to “Dial Drunk” while having appendicitis in the hospital (though I have loved “Anyway” since its release), I absolutely adore this song. I have been listening to it on repeat since it was gifted to me, and his 27.2 million other monthly Spotify listeners, and I still have yet to get bored with it.
Noah Kahan is a man of many trades. He is a talented writer and an advocate for mental health, creating the Busyhead Project to increase care and decrease stigma surrounding the topic. Kahan is genuinely a down-to-earth person. He does not let the fame he has received get to his head, still occasionally posting about his hemorrhoids on his Instagram story. He has grown rapidly in popularity since his first hit album “Stick Season” in 2022, which became a TikTok sensation, according to Seven Days, an independent newspaper out of Vermont, the state that Kahan is from.
Regardless of his questionable online identity, Kahan writes with such deep emotional understanding that one can’t help but feel the intensity of the profound sadness or reminiscence of his songs. In “The Great Divide,” Kahan explores the gap between people who should be close but are separated by their own personal issues. It attempts to dive into understanding other people in relation to your life and why others do what they do. He wishes no ill intent on the person with whom he has drifted apart, and thinks of them fondly. What a profound lesson. I think it is so easy for people to get angry and upset about those who leave or who drift apart, but sometimes you must take the good times for what they once were and use them to grow. It is okay to miss what you once had, but you can’t let that regret stop you from turning into the best version of yourself.
My favorite line is, “I hope you settle down, I hope you marry rich.” Popular choice, I know, but these lyrics were what drew me in from the teasers he would post on TikTok, and I knew the words before the song was even released. This lyric reminds me a lot of some of his other songs, like “You’re Gonna Go Far,” where Kahan talks about how he may be stuck behind in regards to success, but at least he knows the person he loves will be fruitful, saying, “It makes me smile to know when things get hard…you’ll be far from here,” wishing the best for the other person, even if he himself is struggling. His songs are selfless and sweet, instead of angry and vengeful.
On top of the gut-wrenching lyrics, the guitar in this song is absolutely beautiful and rich, contributing to a similar feeling when the sun hits your back during a breezy day at the end of a good summer, where the fun and warmth have come and gone, and now all you have are memories you hope to never forget. Kahan is fantastic at utilizing the guitar to steer emotions. The music he creates transcends the speakers from which it comes out. It jumps into the soul.
Overall, I give this song a 10/10. It would be hard for Kahan to create a song that I perceive as imperfect. Kahan plans to release his full album on April 24, followed by a tour starting on June 11, featuring Gigi Perez, another fantastic artist.