Noah Kahan posted a love letter to Washington DC on Wednesday. He brushed off a pair of recent city scandals with a joke, then landed squarely on affection.
The Vermont-born singer-songwriter put up a photo on Instagram on July 23, and the caption didn’t waste time. He name-checked “Pissgate” and “Poopgate” – two controversies that have kept DC in the news – then waved both aside. “Don’t care it’s too great,” he wrote. “Dc I love you.” Photographer Patrick McCormack shot the image.
Honestly? Great caption. Short, funny, completely unbothered.
The contrast is what makes it fun. DC has been generating some rough news cycles lately. Kahan looked at all of it and wrote a love letter anyway.
For anyone who follows his music, that reaction makes total sense. Kahan is an artist deeply tied to place. His songs are about the feelings specific locations stir up in him. “Stick Season” – his 2022 breakout – is basically a love letter to Vermont in the fall. “Northern Attitude” leans into the same New England state-of-mind energy. He doesn’t write about places like backdrops. He writes about them like relationships.
Turning that warmth toward DC, controversies and all, is very Kahan.
The post earned more than 122,000 likes. That’s a strong response for a casual two-liner with no promotional angle. It also tracks with his fanbase. They respond well to the candid, off-the-cuff version of him – the version who posts from genuine feeling, not a marketing calendar.
His social presence has always leaned personal. He tends to share what moves him – a mood, a city, a moment. The posts feel unscripted. For his fanbase, that’s a big part of the appeal.
His rise happened fast. “Stick Season” dropped in 2022 and picked up real traction almost immediately. The expanded version – “Stick Season (We’ll All Be Here Forever)” – arrived in 2023 and pushed him into a much bigger spotlight. Critics responded warmly to his folk storytelling and emotionally honest writing. He’s been headlining larger venues and festivals ever since.
The fanbase he’s built is a devoted one. They track his touring, engage with his posts, and show up in force. That 122,000-like response to a two-sentence caption is a good illustration of that.
Washington DC has had plenty of noise in the headlines lately. Kahan’s take cuts right through it. He didn’t weigh in on the politics. He didn’t add to the drama. He showed up, loved the city, and said so out loud.
DC should be flattered.
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