Stella Lefty explains how Noah Kahan got a writing credit on viral hit ‘Boston’
Music
“When I was writing the song, I wasn’t thinking about Noah Kahan.”
Vanity Fair did a deep dive profiling rising star Stella Lefty last week as her debut album “Long Way Home” came out Friday.
The piece chronicles the singer-songwriter’s path to fame, which has reached new heights this summer with her viral hit “Boston.” It also highlights the backlash she’s received for being an alleged “nepo baby” or “industry plant” because of her billionaire father (Eric Lefkofsky, the co-founder of Groupon) and, maybe more newsworthy to New England audiences, the similarities between “Boston” and “Stick Season,” the viral hit released in 2022 from Vermont singer-songwriter Noah Kahan.
Kahan was ultimately given a writing credit on “Boston,” although Lefty told Vanity Fair she didn’t intentionally pull from his work. Here’s what she said:
“I wrote the chorus to ‘Boston,’ posted it, and didn’t think about it at all,” she remembers. “I woke up the next morning and [the video] had done relatively well.” Fans were into it.
They also pointed out that the record sounded a lot like Noah Kahan’s 2024 single “Stick Season,” another once-viral New England Americana anthem. “When I was writing the song, I wasn’t thinking about Noah Kahan,” Lefty says. “I was literally thinking about nothing at all.” She didn’t register the similarity at all when fans first remarked on it, but eventually Kahan’s reps got in touch. “We think this sounds similar,” Lefty remembers them saying. She and her team decided to give Kahan a writing credit before the song officially came out, preventing any risk of legal action. “I don’t want to step on anybody’s toes, so I’m like, if this sounds like that, whatever, all good.”
Lefty’s “Long Way Home Tour” hits Boston on Jan. 27, 2027, when she’ll take the stage at MGM Music Hall at Fenway. Prior to that, she’ll be performing at Royale in Boston on Nov. 17. And just this summer, she sang “Boston” at Loretta’s Last Call.
As for any similarities to “Stick Season,” well, you can be the judge:
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