In his recent Rolling Stone cover story, the songwriter opened up about how Punisher influenced his music
Phoebe Bridgers returned to the stage on Friday for her first solo performance in three years. Held at the Liberty, a small club in Roswell, New Mexico, the singer-songwriter debuted four new songs — presumably from her new album, which fans have dubbed “PB3.“
Bridgers has kept a low profile since wrapping her tour with boygenius — her supergroup with Lucy Dacus and Julien Baker — and announcing their hiatus in February 2024. There’s been an overwhelming amount of excitement for her return, and that includes from fellow songwriter Noah Kahan. On X, when a fan asked Kahan if he was “sat” for Bridgers’ new era, he replied, “I am leaving an imprint in my chair that will be studied by paleontologists for hundreds of years.”
Kahan has been open about his appreciation for Bridgers’ music, particularly around the release of her 2020 now-classic breakthrough Punisher. When speaking with Rolling Stone for his June 2026 cover story, he discussed how the album influenced his own songwriting — specifically Bridgers’ brilliant knack for specificity.
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“Punisher was the first album where I’m like, ‘Whoa, she’s really talking about things that I wasn’t there for and that I wasn’t privy to, but that draws me in more,’” he said. “And then I started listening to it, and finding that own person in my life that I might have had that experience with, or connecting more of those lyrics. I started to give myself permission to be more specific. Phoebe does that so brilliantly, and I can’t wait for whatever she does next, because she’s amazing.”
When asking Kahan who he’d love to collaborate with in the future, you can probably guess who he mentioned. “I think working with Phoebe would be insane,” he said. Fans are already scheming how this might happen — whether Kahan releases a deluxe version of The Great Divide and Bridgers appears, or something else entirely. Until then, we’ll be wishing hard on a Chinese satellite.
