Chart-topping artist Noah Kahan has publicly pleaded with fans to stop stealing a road sign featured in his hit song, after repeated thefts disrupted a small Vermont community. The folk-pop star, known for viral hits like Stick Season and The Great Divide, took to social media to address the issue.
Fan Theft of Alger Brook Road Sign
In his song The View Between Villages, released in 2022, Kahan sings: 'Passed Alger Brook Road, I'm over the bridge / A minute from home, but I feel so far from it.' The lyric became a TikTok staple, but fans began stealing the actual road sign in Strafford, Vermont, where Kahan grew up.
Kahan wrote on social media: 'To the fans travelling to the upper valley, I've been informed that the Alger Brook Road sign in Strafford has been repeatedly stolen. It is a total disrespect to the folks who live on that road and a headache for the town to deal with. I used to live on Alger Brook.'
Apology and Offer to Replace Signs
He apologized to residents and offered to pay for replacements: 'I hate that because I put the road name in a song that some people have taken that as an invitation to disrupt the lives of the hardworking and kind folks who frequent it.' He encouraged Strafford locals to contact him for 'potential solutions.'
Addressing his fanbase, Kahan emphasized his protectiveness over his family's privacy and his hometown: 'This community has grown much larger and for that reason I feel I should again remind you all about how deeply protective I am over my family's privacy, and of the sanctuary where I am from, please don't disturb these places or people.'
Broader Context of Location References in Music
Kahan is not the first artist to popularize a location through song—Taylor Swift's Cornelia Street and The Beatles' Penny Lane are famous examples. However, the theft of road signs has become an issue in Strafford, a small town in Vermont.
The Grammy-nominated artist released his fourth studio album, The Great Divide, earlier this year and has a sold-out world tour underway.
