Noah Kahan Came to Carolina. Here Are 5 Takeaways From His Raleigh Show

Amidst the US leg of his The Great Divide Tour, folk-pop singer Noah Kahan stopped by Raleigh’s Carter-Finley Stadium for a sold-out concert on Saturday. The performance featured 26 songs from the singer’s catalogue on a cool summer night, with opening sets by Gigi Perez and Annabelle Dinda, who followed the show with her own solo gig at Amos’ Southend in Charlotte.

Here are five takeaways from the show and Kahan’s rise to success:

1. Noah Kahan didn’t appear overnight
Sure, his single “Stick Season” blew up in 2022, but the song appeared on his third album. But it was clear by the fact that he sold out a football stadium in our state capital — as he sold out four nights in a row at Boston’s Fenway Park earlier this month — that he has fully arrived.

Ever the humorist, Kahan even joked about his recent success before performing the song “Howling” from his second album, I Was / I Am, which released in 2021. After the crowd roared for his mention of the song and album, he jokingly shot back, “You’re lying. Like nine people bought that album and I know all of your first and last names.”

2. Fans love Noah Kahan merchandise
The line for the merch tent outside of Carter-Finley on Saturday ran hundreds deep an hour before opening in the morning. Even before opener Annabelle Dinda took the stage, lines for merchandise tables extended halfway around the stadium concourse. Seriously. Having been to hundreds of concerts, I’ve never in my life seen lines so long for merchandise (though I didn’t attend Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour, and I imagine that might have been the only one to outdo Noah’s fans).

Those long lines were persistent from the opening of the gates through the break between opener Perez and Kahan’s set. Something to consider: Those who stood in line early waited anywhere from an hour to 90 minutes to buy a shirt, poster, album or souvenir while two songs into Kahan’s set only five people remained in line.

3. Kahan has learned how to create a stadium experience
From the Vermont farmhouse that was created in the middle of the stage — part prop and part video screen — to the light-up, in-synch wristbands that attendees received, Kahan’s set was in-and-of-itself a complete experience. Instead of feeling like they were a mile away from the performer, attendees felt like they were part of the show.

When Kahan was acting through “getting arrested” during “Dial Drunk,” there was an ’80s Volvo on stage, a Vermont State Trooper going through the motions of cuffing him (only the hand without the microphone) and every wristband in the crowd was flashing red and blue. At other points, they’d light up out of sync to look more like lightning bugs. Kahan, meanwhile, entered the stage through the front door of the home, sang a song while perched on the roof and made full use of ramps leading out into the crowd.

4. Kahan’s personality shone through
“It’s just me and a microphone right now, kinda like a youth pastor,” Kahan joked at one moment. He trolled the Triangle crowd by insisting that NC State is better than Duke and Carolina, drawing equal amounts applause and boos. He told the crowd, “I’m Noah Kahan and we’re here to make you fucking cry,” shortly into the night’s performance. At another point, he joked, “I’m sweating so profusely, I’m definitely gonna get ringworm.”

He often kept his eyes closed to belt out notes with all his might and emotion, while at other times he’d go wide-eyed and emphasize certain lyrics. During “Dashboard,” he had the whole crowd singing along to “You’re an asshole after all…” There wasn’t a lot of banter aside from those occasional comments, but somehow I left feeling like I knew him better than I did when I arrived.

5. Gigi Perez is ready for her moment
Less than a year ago, Gigi Perez sold out The Fillmore Charlotte for a stop on her own tour. Now she’s opening for Noah Kahan’s stadium tour and her experience headlining the At the Beach, In Every Life Tour in 2025 is clearly paying off, as she’s simply owning the moment.

Perez was far more animated in Raleigh and sounded as good as ever while appearing to enjoy every minute of it. Her 40-minute set included a cover of Lana Del Rey’s “Summertime Sadness” and, to no surprise, her 2025 hit single “Sailor Song” drew the biggest singalong. She also reappeared to perform “She Calls Me Back” with Kahan later in the night.

Kahan will continue his tour into the winter, with every stadium in both America and Europe already listed as sold out on his website.

Noah Kahan setlist
American Cars
Doors
All My Love
Deny Deny Deny
Staying Still
Haircut
Downfall
She Calls Me Back
Dashboard
Dial Drunk
Willing and Able
Porch Light
Orbiter
Howling
Paid Time Off
Pain Is Cold Water
Maine
Dan
The View Between Villages
Northern Attitude
The Great Divide
Orange Juice
New Perspective

Encore
End of August
Homesick
Stick Season

Gigi Perez setlist
Please Be Rude
Sleeping
At the Beach, in Every Life
Fable
Sugar Water
Summertime Sadness
The Wall
Twister
Sailor Song

Be sure to check out Queen City Nerve’s Soundwave, Charlotte’s most comprehensive live music listing, so you don’t miss out on any shows or concerts coming up. And hell, if you’re looking for something else to do, you can check out our events page as well, which runs the gamut of things to do in Charlotte. You don’t ever have to be bored again. You can check out more of Jeff’s pics and live reviews here.