On Friday, Vermont-born singer-songwriter Noah Kahan released “The Great Divide,” a meticulous and heartfelt exploration of mental health and friendship. The song is the title track of Kahan’s highly anticipated fourth studio album of the same name, which will be released on April 24.
The single is carried by a driving rhythm and lyrics that drip with rich visual imagery, like the “cigarette burns on the same side of our hands.” Kahan’s lyrics show profound intention, pairing universal truths with meticulously constructed scenes that allow the music to achieve emotional impact without seeming cliche.
Grappling with similar themes heard in his previous work, the song addresses Kahan’s former friend who struggled with mental health and religious trauma. But on this track, Kahan’s wounds appear less fresh and his outlook more hopeful: “I hope you settle down, I hope you marry rich,” he sings. “I hope you’re scared of only ordinary s**t.” Kahan’s chorus devastatingly exemplifies the act of loving someone with mental illness, wishing that they carried smaller, more manageable burdens.
Since his rise to fame in 2023, Kahan has served as a voice for the often overlooked joys, loneliness and fears of rural America. Inspired by his upbringing in rural Vermont, much of Kahan’s discography carries a strong sense of place, and “The Great Divide” is no exception. In the song, a state border serves as a metaphor for the brink of mental struggle. “You inched yourself across the great divide / While we drove aimlessly along the Twin State line,” Kahan sings.
The official music video for “The Great Divide” was released on Sunday night during a commercial break in the Grammy awards. The video cuts between Kahan, a pair of young adults living out his past and the pair as children, emphasizing the heartbreak and healing that come with growing up. Kahan watches the two young men — allegories for himself and an old friend — with a combination of nostalgia and regret.
The melancholic lyrics and heavy subject matter of “The Great Divide” are bolstered by sweeping, percussive layers of guitar. Kahan’s voice, pleading and sincere, propels the song beyond the five-minute mark. But Kahan is no stranger to writing long songs, and “The Great Divide” satisfyingly builds to its conclusion without feeling overdrawn.
The newly released video reflects the optimism of the song’s lyrics, concluding with a hug between present-day Kahan and his lifelong friend. Like Kahan’s music, the video humanizes mental illness, portraying it not as a fatal flaw but as a complex and real affliction.
