Noah Kahan charted with “Dial Drunk”

Dial Drunk Noah Kahan with Post Malone

Writer(s): Noah Kahan, Austin Post, Noah Levine (see lyrics here) Released: July 17, 2023 First Charted: June 17, 2023 Peak: 25 BB, 21 AC, 9 A40, 12 AA, 12 MR, 32 UK, 14 CN, 45 AU, 1 DF (Click for codes to charts.) Sales (in millions): 2.0 US, 0.6 UK, 3.04 world (includes US + UK) Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, 31.28 video, 547.22 streaming

Awards: Click on award for more details.

About the Song: Everyone has songs that are personally iconic for them. Some resonate as mantras (Indigo Girls’ “Closer to Fine,”Michael Franti’s “Everyone Deserves Music”) or reflections on life (XTC’s “Dear God,” Crowded House’s “Silent House”). There are those that capture pivotal moments of young adulthood either in mood or message (Styx’s “Renegade,” David + David’s “Welcome to the Boomtown”). For me, there are also songs that will forever represent a time where my sense of musical discovery expanded (Marillion’s “Kayleigh,” Tori Amos’ “Silent All These Years”). On the latter front, most people tend to abandon the pursuit of new music in their thirties, preferring to soak up the nostalgia of their youth. Even at 57, however, I’m always interested in finding new artists, new songs, and new sounds. “Dial Drunk” became one of those latter songs. My son Evan was home from college over Christmas break 2023 and expressed surprise at hearing me listen to Noah Kahan on Spotify. Evan had just seen Kahan live in New York with a friend. I confessed that the song “Dial Drunk” had just randomly popped up on my playlist and I hadn’t been familiar with the artist although I’d heard the song a few times. The song became a launching point for me as I delved deep into Kahan’s music and was especially taken by the slew of musicians with whom he’d dueted (Zach Bryan, Brandi Carlile, Hozier, Kacey Musgraves, Post Malone, and Joy Oladokun). It sent me down a very welcomed rabbit hole for 2024 as I embraced what I call “New Americana” music, which included the artists I’ve listed as well as Benson Boone, Shaboozey, Teddy Swims and others. As for Noah Kahan’s background, the folk-pop singer/songwriter was born on January 1, 1997 in Strattford, Vermont. He released his first album, Busyhead, in 2019 but it wasn’t until his third album, 2022’s Stick Season, that his career really took off. The double-platinum release peaked at #2 on the Billboard album chart propelled by the top-10 success of the title cut as well as top-40 success with “Northern Attitude” and “Dial Drunk.” The latter – the third single – caught the attention of rapper and singer Post Malone. Kahan said of the collaboration, which included a new verse written by Malone, that “it has been a dream come true to make this collaboration happen.” WK Kahan also said of the song in general, “I never know when or why a song is going to land and to see the meaning and connection you have drawn from this track has inspired me in a way I have never been inspired before.” WK Songfacts.com said of the song, “In this raw and introspective narrative, Noah Kahan finds himself in a dire situation, having just been arrested for drunk driving and desperately needing help. Struggling with his own demons and breaking a promise, he dials his ex's phone number, which he knows will go unanswered. From the very beginning of the song, the tone is set, as he reflects on the irony of remembering his promise not to contact his ex, yet succumbing to the allure of the past while under the influence of alcohol.” SF Resources: DMDB encyclopedia entry for Noah Kahan DMDB encyclopedia entry for Post Malone SF Songfacts WK Wikipedia First posted 10/15/2024.