Don’t underestimate Noah Kahan at the Grammys
Noah Kahan has been having a great few months. The folk star has been rapidly rising in public awareness, starting with the release of his acclaimed breakout album, “Stick Season,” released a year ago. Now he has two charting hits on the Billboard Hot 100 simultaneously, multiple highbrow collaborations with previous Grammy nominees and winners and the acknowledgement of strong industry players, not to mention the album is still in the top 20 of the Billboard 200 albums chart. Clearly Kahan is doing something right, and people are taking notice. But among those fans of the breakout star, could there be Grammy voters ready to anoint him?
In many ways, Kahan could be considered Grammy bait. He is a folk singer, appealing to the big American roots contingent in the recording academy, but he should also appeal to a big audience of alternative and pop listeners. In that way, he’s similar to previous Best New Artist nominee Alabama Shakes and winner Bon Iver. Kahan is also an accomplished songwriter; almost all the tracks on “Stick Season” were self-written, including its buzzy lead single of the same name, which just entered the top 30 on Spotify in the US. Adding to his Grammy appeal, Kahan has been successful enough to be a known player; many comparable artists, like rock singer-songwriter Courtney Barnett or alternative-folk superstar Phoebe Bridgers, have likely failed to win due to not having much success on the charts at the time of their nominations. Luckily for Kahan, this won’t be the case.
In fact, commercial appeal is another factor in his favor. This year has been a bit slow for breakouts. Kahan is one of the few new artists this year to make a significant impact, joining select names like Bailey Zimmerman, Raye, Ice Spice, PinkPantheress, and Peso Pluma. However, Kahan stands out for achieving success not only for his individual hits, but for his album as a whole, something that only Pluma and Zimmerman can also claim from the aforementioned list.
In Pluma’s case, he’s a Latin artist making regional Mexican music, which might be too niche to overcome the language barrier for your typical Grammy voter. Pantheress and Raye, meanwhile, might be seen as one-hit wonders in the United States, something voters are typically put off by. And if it comes down to Kahan versus Ice Spice, it really wouldn’t be shocking if the Grammys chose a pop/folk singer-songwriter over a drill rapper, especially considering many might not take Ice as seriously as an artist due to her viral success coming from meme culture. Or over a country singer with no pop crossover appeal so far like Zimmerman, who hasn’t reached the pop airplay charts; Kahan’s “Dial Drunk” is a top-20 hit there.
We should also consider the industry support Kahan’s been getting. He collaborated with Post Malone on “Dial Drunk,” which shot the song up the charts. Recently he released the remix of another “Stick Season” track, “Call Your Mom,” with fellow BNA contender Lizzy McAlpine. He was also featured on Zach Bryan’s latest EP, “Boys of Faith,” on “Sarah’s Place,” which debuted at number-14 on the Hot 100. There’s also a collaboration with Kacey Musgraves on the way, remixing yet another “Stick Season” track, “She Calls Me Back.” Even artists that haven’t been on Kahan’s songs are enthusiastic about him: BNA winner Olivia Rodrigo recently covered “Stick Season” for BBC Radio 1, and Kahan sang alongside Hozier live on his tour too. He additionally performed at the Americana Music Honors and Awards, despite not yet being nominated, to honor the great Paul Simon. Clearly the industry is paying attention.
It might be too early to call Kahan a sure bet. For all we know, he could get entirely goose-egged like fellow internet sensation Joji last year. That said, considering how his career is going and the type of authentic, Americana-based alt music he’s been making, it’s hard not to see Kahan’s career going up from here. Especially with a fan base so devoted and ever-growing. For now, we’ll have to sit back and wait until nominations are out in November. Until then, we’ll be streaming “Stick Season” once again like the rest of America seems to be doing.
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