Why Noah Kahan Received a Retroactive Writing Credit on Stella Lefty’s “Boston”

# The basic timeline Stella Lefty — born Stella Lefkofsky and described in coverage as a Chicago pop-country artist and Groupon heiress — released the song "Boston" earlier this year on her Is This Heaven? EP. The song went viral on TikTok, climbed the charts, and reached No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100.

# The similarity to Noah Kahan's "Stick Season" Listeners and fans noticed that "Boston" bore a strong melodic resemblance to Noah Kahan's signature song "Stick Season." Lefty told Vanity Fair she didn't set out to copy Kahan. Her direct quote: "When I was writing the song, I wasn't thinking about Noah Kahan. I was literally thinking about nothing at all."

Lefty has performed covers of "Stick Season" many times, which users pointed out on social platforms. That history of covering the song contributed to the public perception that the two tracks sounded very similar.

# How the credit was added Between the song's TikTok breakout and its official release, Noah Kahan's team reached out saying they noticed a resemblance. Lefty agreed to add Kahan as a credited writer retroactively. She told Vanity Fair: "I don't want to step on anybody's toes, so I'm like, if this sounds like that, whatever, all good."

# Where the song sits in Lefty's career "Boston" served as Lefty's breakthrough single. It began on an EP (Is This Heaven?) and helped build momentum for her debut album, Long Way Home, which had its release the Friday referenced in coverage. Public attention to the song's similarity to Kahan became part of wider coverage of Lefty's rapid rise and background.

# Public reaction and coverage

# What this means practically When a newer release closely resembles an existing song, the parties involved sometimes resolve authorship by adding credits after the fact rather than pursuing public disputes or litigation. In this case, Lefty accepted Kahan's credit after his team raised the resemblance, and she framed the decision as avoiding stepping on anyone's toes.

# Final note The story centers on a viral breakthrough, audience comparisons, and an amicable retroactive attribution rather than explicit legal action. Lefty's public statements emphasize lack of intent and willingness to credit the earlier work once the similarity was pointed out.