Review: Noah Kahan Brings THE GREAT DIVIDE Tour to a Sold-Out BC Place

Noah Kahan has come a long way since first performing in Vancouver. On August 28, the Vermont singer-songwriter brought THE GREAT DIVIDE Tour to a sold-out BC Place for one of the final stops of the tour’s North American leg. It was Kahan’s biggest Vancouver show to date, following years of performances at increasingly larger venues across the city.

Kahan first headlined the Commodore Ballroom in 2019 and returned to the venue in 2021. By 2023, he had moved to the Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports Centre, followed by Rogers Arena in 2024. Two years later, he returned to headline BC Place. The progression reflects how much Kahan’s audience has grown, particularly following the success of his 2022 album Stick Season.

That growth has continued with The Great Divide, Kahan’s fourth studio album and the follow-up to Stick Season. Released in April, the album arrived only a few months after Kahan announced his largest headline tour yet, with shows across North America before continuing to Oceania and Europe. Vancouver came near the end of the North American run, but there was little sense of tour fatigue at BC Place. Instead, Kahan delivered a show that matched the scale of his new surroundings while keeping the focus on his music, humour and connection with the audience.

The night began with American indie-folk singer Annabelle Dinda, who took the stage at 6:30 p.m. for her first performance in Vancouver. Her short set offered an early introduction to the night, with the biggest response coming during “The Hand,” her breakout single released last year. Dinda briefly spoke about the song’s criticism of the different standards placed on male and female artists before joking that Kahan was exempt, earning a laugh from the crowd.

Gigi Perez followed at 7:15 p.m., but her opening set did not go as planned. Backed by a full band, Perez started strong with “Please Be Rude” before technical problems brought the performance to an unexpected stop. While her crew worked to resolve the issue, Perez stayed onstage and spoke with the audience, sharing that she first came across Kahan’s music through “False Confidence” in 2018.

After briefly leaving the stage, Perez returned to explain that the issue had not been resolved and she would be unable to perform the rest of her planned set. Rather than ending there, she performed “Sailor Song” without her band as thousands of fans turned on their phone flashlights throughout BC Place. Perez later explained on Instagram that her mic pack had cut out following her first song, apologizing to fans and promising to return to Vancouver.

Despite having her set cut short, Perez handled the situation well and received plenty of support from the Vancouver crowd. Fortunately, it would not be her last appearance of the night. She returned during Kahan’s set for “She Calls Me Back,” giving fans another chance to see her perform after the technical problems earlier in the evening.

Photo Credit: Noah Kahan

By the time Kahan was ready to take the stage at 8:30 p.m., BC Place had been transformed to fit the aesthetic surrounding his music. The main stage was designed around a rustic house surrounded by greenery, with a vintage Volvo 740 Wagon parked nearby. Even at the scale of BC Place, the design fit naturally with the small-town New England imagery that has long been tied to Kahan’s music.

Shortly before the show began, insects appeared across the large screens as the set began to come to life. A one-minute countdown then appeared, building anticipation throughout the stadium as the bracelets handed to each audience member lit up in sync. The bracelets continued to change throughout the night, creating different patterns and lighting effects across BC Place to match each song. It was a simple addition that worked especially well in a venue of this size and gave the audience another way to feel involved in the production.

Kahan opened with “American Cars,” immediately introducing new material from The Great Divide while setting an upbeat pace for the beginning of the show. He was joined by a large band whose instrumentation shifted throughout the night, moving between electric guitars, drums and keys to fiddle and banjo. The range of instruments gave Kahan’s songs much of the fullness they have on record while making the live arrangements feel bigger for a stadium setting.

The screens behind them were equally well used. Rather than relying heavily on lyrics or a straightforward live feed, the production mixed close-up shots of Kahan and his band with moving scenery and other visuals that changed with the songs. The screens helped bring the production closer to fans throughout the stadium while adding another visual layer to the stories Kahan told through his music.

What stood out most during the opening stretch, though, was the audience. Fans were already singing along from “American Cars,” and the response only grew as Kahan moved through “Doors” and into “All My Love.” During the latter, voices filled BC Place as fans repeatedly sang the chorus and pumped their fists in the air. There was little effort needed from Kahan to encourage participation. His audience already knew when to join in.

Photo Credit: Noah Kahan

Between songs, Kahan’s sense of humour quickly became another memorable part of the show. Looking around BC Place, he joked with fans seated in the suites, telling them, “congrats on being rich.” At other points, his conversations took a more personal turn as he spoke openly about mental health and therapy, topics he has discussed throughout his career. These interactions gave the audience a better sense of Kahan’s personality outside of the music.

Kahan also took some time to reflect on his history in Vancouver, mentioning his earlier shows at the Commodore Ballroom and the difference between performing there and standing in front of a sold-out BC Place years later. With several fans in the crowd wearing merchandise from his previous tours, it was clear that some had been coming to see Kahan long before his shows reached stadium size.

One of the night’s biggest surprises came before “She Calls Me Back.” Earlier in the day, Kahan had teased on X that there would be a “very special guest on the phone call tonight.” That guest turned out to be Canadian comedian Nathan Fielder, who appeared on the screens through a video call and briefly poked fun at Kahan before the song began. Gigi Perez then returned to the stage to join Kahan for “She Calls Me Back,” giving her another moment in front of the Vancouver crowd.

Kahan continued with “Dashboard” and “Dial Drunk,” with the audience once again singing along without needing much encouragement. “Dial Drunk” also brought another Vancouver-specific change to the show. Instead of the police officer normally involved in the song’s onstage arrest sequence, Kahan was met by an officer dressed in the RCMP’s recognizable red serge. The small change drew a big response and gave Vancouver its own version of the recurring bit.

The stage itself continued to change along with the show. The house was transformed into a convenience store for part of the set, while its roof was later lowered to create another performance space for “Willing and Able” and “Porch Light.” Rather than leaving Kahan at the centre of the main stage for the entire show, the production continued finding different ways to move him around the set and, soon, much farther into BC Place itself.

Photo Credit: Noah Kahan

Kahan then left the main stage and made his way into the crowd for a more stripped-down portion of the show. From the C-stage, he began with an extended version of “Orbiter” before revealing Vancouver’s surprise song, “You’re Gonna Go Far.” Performed stripped back, the song fit well with a part of the concert that placed Kahan much closer to fans throughout the stadium.

His band soon joined him for “Paid Time Off,” with each musician getting a moment to take the lead and show what they brought to the performance. It was a nice reminder of how much the band contributed throughout the night. With fiddle, banjo, guitars, drums, keys and other instruments appearing across the set, the band gave many of Kahan’s songs a fuller sound live without overpowering his vocals.

The C-stage portion continued with “Pain is Cold Water” and “Maine.” By this point, Kahan had largely stopped introducing songs before playing them, and there was little need for him to do so. Fans recognized them almost immediately and joined in without being prompted. He closed this part of the show with “Dan,” the final track on The Great Divide and a song inspired by his lifelong childhood friend from Vermont. As the song picked up, clapping spread throughout the crowd before Kahan eventually made his way back to the main stage.

From there, the final stretch brought some of the night’s strongest performances. “The View Between Villages” and “Northern Attitude” showed how well Kahan’s voice carried in a stadium of this size. There was some natural echo throughout BC Place, but rather than taking away from his vocals, it added to the sound of the songs inside the stadium. Even with everything happening across the stage and screens, Kahan’s live vocals remained one of the strongest parts of the show.

The visuals became more ambitious during this section as well. At several points, live footage of Kahan and the audience was layered with scenic imagery across the screens, creating some of the most memorable visuals of the night. By the time Kahan reached “The Great Divide,” the audience was once again doing much of the work with him. He stopped singing during part of the song, and thousands of voices immediately carried it forward without hesitation.

Kahan followed with “Orange Juice” and “New Perspective” to close the main set before briefly leaving the stage. When he returned for the encore, he sat down at the piano for “End of August,” followed by “Homesick.” By then, the energy inside BC Place had hardly dropped, with fans still singing along just as loudly as they had earlier in the night.

Photo Credit: Noah Kahan

There was only one song that made sense to end the night. Kahan closed with “Stick Season,” which brought some of the loudest singing of the night as voices filled BC Place for one final song. It was a fitting end to a concert where the audience had been just as much a part of the experience from beginning to end.

Before leaving the stage, Kahan brought his full band forward and introduced the musicians who had accompanied him throughout the night. The recognition was well deserved after a show where the band had been such an important part of the live sound, particularly during the more instrument-heavy arrangements and extended versions of several songs.

Despite the size of THE GREAT DIVIDE Tour, the production never overshadowed the music. The changing stage, synchronized bracelets and large-screen visuals added plenty to the experience, but Kahan did not need to rely on them to keep the audience engaged. Whether he was performing from one of the smaller stages, sitting at the piano or simply singing with his band, the focus remained on the songs and the audience’s connection to them.

The audience played a huge role in making the Vancouver show what it was. From the opening songs through “Stick Season,” fans rarely stopped singing, dancing or reacting to Kahan. Many wore merchandise from his previous tours, while others had travelled to Vancouver specifically for the concert. It was clear that this was an audience familiar with much more than Kahan’s biggest songs.

Selling out BC Place also marks a major point in Kahan’s history of performing in Vancouver. Seven years after headlining the Commodore Ballroom, he returned to fill the city’s largest concert venue without losing the personality and openness that have become such an important part of his shows. THE GREAT DIVIDE Tour is bigger in nearly every way, but Kahan still seems most comfortable when he is talking directly to his audience, playing alongside his band and giving fans plenty of opportunities to sing with him.

Noah Kahan brought THE GREAT DIVIDE Tour to BC Place in Vancouver, BC on August 28. The North American leg concludes with two sold-out shows at T-Mobile Park in Seattle, WA on August 30 and 31 before the tour continues to Oceania, Europe and the UK. For more information about Noah Kahan and to join the waitlist for tickets, visit the link below.

Noah Kahan’s THE GREAT DIVIDE 2026 North American Tour dates are as follows:

June 11 – Orlando, FL – Kia Center

June 12 – Orlando, FL – Kia Center

June 26 – Philadelphia, PA – Citizens Bank Park

June 28 – Toronto, ON – Rogers Stadium

July 1 – Cincinnati, OH – Great American Ball Park

July 3 – Pittsburgh, PA – PNC Park

July 7 – Boston, MA – Fenway Park

July 8 – Boston, MA – Fenway Park

July 10 – Boston, MA – Fenway Park

July 11 – Boston, MA – Fenway Park

July 14 – Chicago, IL – Wrigley Field

July 15 – Chicago, IL – Wrigley Field

July 19 – Queens, NY – Citi Field

July 22 – Washington, DC – Nationals Park

July 25 – Raleigh, NC – Carter-Finley Stadium

July 27 – Atlanta, GA – Truist Park

July 30 – Arlington, TX – Globe Life Field

August 2 – St. Louis, MO – Busch Stadium

August 5 – Minneapolis, MN – Target Field

August 8 – Denver, CO – Coors Field

August 9 – Denver, CO – Coors Field

August 15 – Pasadena, CA – Rose Bowl Stadium

August 17 – San Diego, CA – Petco Park

August 19 – Phoenix, AZ – Chase Field

August 21 – San Francisco, CA – Oracle Park

August 25 – Sandy, UT – America First Field

August 28 – Vancouver, BC – BC Place

August 30 – Seattle, WA – T-Mobile Park

August 31 – Seattle, WA – T-Mobile Park

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