Noah Kahan made his return to Saturday Night Live on Saturday night (May 9), joining host Matt Damon as musical guest for Season 51’s penultimate episode — his second SNL appearance since his breakthrough 2023 debut.
The Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter appeared on the show two weeks after releasing The Great Divide, his fourth studio album, out April 24 via Mercury Records, performing album tracks “Doors” and “The Great Divide” for the Studio 8H audience.
The album debuted at No. 1 in both the United States and United Kingdom, with the former marking the best first-week sales for a rock album in over a decade. Produced by Gabe Simon and Aaron Dessner of The National, the 17-track record has been widely praised as a significant artistic step forward for Kahan.
In the lead-up to Saturday’s appearance, Kahan delivered a stripped-back Tiny Desk performance featuring album tracks “American Cars,” “The Great Divide” and “Paid Time Off,” alongside Stick Season fan favorite “Orange Juice.”
He also appeared on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon to discuss the album, and attended this year’s TIME100 Gala after being named among TIME’s 100 Most Influential People of 2026, where he was honored by Marcus Mumford, who wrote: “Musically, he brings us closer to our humanity in the same way some of the great ’60s folk songwriters did: pairing lyrics set in a particular space and time with traditionally infused pop melodies like Bob Dylan and Joni Mitchell at their best.”
Saturday’s episode also marked a milestone for host Matt Damon, who returned to Studio 8H for his third hosting stint. Promotional materials leaned into the shared New England heritage of both artists — Damon hailing from Boston, Kahan from Strafford, Vermont.
Kahan also recently launched Noah Kahan: Out of Body, a Netflix documentary that premiered at SXSW 2026, where it received the 24 Beats Per Second Audience Award. The film follows Kahan’s rise to stadium-level stardom and addresses his ongoing struggles with anxiety and body dysmorphia.
Kahan’s first SNL appearance in December 2023 saw him perform “Dial Drunk” and “Stick Season” from his breakthrough album We’ll All Be Here Forever. That record produced the multi-platinum hit “Stick Season,” which peaked at No. 18 on the Billboard Hot 100 and earned Kahan two Grammy nominations. His Great Divide World Tour includes four record-breaking sold-out nights at Boston’s Fenway Park — making him the first artist in history to play and sell out four shows at the venue — as well as additional arena dates in London, Dublin, Sydney, Melbourne and Auckland.
SNL Season 51 closes next week with Will Ferrell hosting and Paul McCartney as musical guest.
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