Published July 27, 2026 at 2:23 PM EDT

Barrett Heidtbrink stood in line outside of Bellow Butcher Co. in downtown Wendell on Saturday morning. Like many of the people around him, he was in town to see Vermont singer-songwriter Noah Kahan play a sold-out show at Raleigh's Carter-Finley Stadium.

Throughout his "The Great Divide" tour, Kahan has partnered with local businesses to sell exclusive merch and themed menu items, as well as to raise money for his mental health non-profit, The Busyhead Project.

That partnership is what brought Heidtbrink to Wendell – a town he said he would have never visited otherwise. Originally from Killeen, Texas, Heidtbrink said he never even heard of the town before showing up.

"It's awesome to see an artist like him not pairing with some big brand like Burger King or Taco Bell or anything like that," Heidtbrink said. "It's awesome to see that an artist is wanting to help bring business to local communities that actually need the business."

Over the weekend, Kahan's team partnered with six different businesses throughout the Triangle. In downtown Wendell alone, hundreds of people walked between Daughter's Soft Serve, Bellow Butcher Co. and Parallax Coffee Lab. Some donned Kahan merch, others carried themed drinks.

Lauren Rhodes

Drinks served by Parallax Coffee Lab for a Noah Kahan partnerhip in Wendell, N.C., on July 25, 2026.

Parallax Coffee Lab Owner Kenneth Freyer said in a statement the shop sold roughly 650 themed beverages.

"(The merchandise) was gone within the first hour; we had people lined up an hour beforehand, all the way around the block, in the middle of a torrential downpour, the dedication was real!" he said.

Chris Gass, co-owner of Bellow Butcher, called the turnout "insane." About 40 minutes after opening, he estimated they had served about 100 people.

Gass, who also owns Daughter's Soft Serve with his wife, Lauren Gass, said the Parallax Coffee Lab team helped to connect them with Kahan's team. He hadn't heard of Kahan before being connected, though he said he had since cried to the singer's song "Orange Juice" in the car with his daughters.

"We're just really grateful that they reached out to us," he said. "It's really cool, and I think that in terms of supporting small businesses, this is one of the better things that I've seen done for small businesses. So I applaud their team for that."

Indoor cycling studio Revel Durham offered a Kahan-themed class and fundraiser class the day before his concert.

Owner Mia Wise said the studio had raised almost $1,000 for The Busyhead Project in 2026, including a fundraiser ride they held in May for Mental Health Awareness Month.

As a studio rooted in connection and community, Wise said partnering with the project felt like a natural fit.

Lauren Rhodes

Riders write notes at Revel Durham before a fundraiser ride for Noah Kahan's The Busyhead Project in Durham, N.C., on July 24, 2026.

"Everyone in the room, you never know what they're going through, and we will never know what they're going through," Founding Instructor Sam Sette said. "But we can speak to each of them, we can hold space for each of them and that is really powerful."

The Busyhead Project is a non-profit mental health organization aiming to end stigma and improve access to resources, according to the project's website. Named after his debut album, Kahan founded the non-profit in 2023.

Since then, it's raised over $6.6 million for 170 community-based organizations around the world. Last year in North Carolina, grantees included All Souls Counseling Center and the National Alliance on Mental Illness Western Carolina.