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Singer-songwriter Noah Kahan played a sold out show at NC State University’s Carter-Finley Stadium last week, an event that sent Raleigh into a fervor. It was Kahan’s first time headlining a football stadium show.
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But how much money did the public university make from the event?
Contract details between the entertainment company Live Nation and NC State obtained by The News & Observer help answer that question.
Live Nation paid NC State a license fee of $400,000, plus five dollars for every ticket sold. For a concert with an estimated attendance of more than 50,000, that sum would come to more than $250,000.
NC State got to keep all the revenue from concessions like alcohol and snacks, premium seating, and parking — which cost $60 per on-site parking spot. The school also earned 20% of the merchandise sales for this stop on Kahan’s “The Great Divide Tour.”
Live Nation agreed to pay $187,500 to cover half of the cost of replacing the grass field in the stadium. Guns n’ Roses played the venue just two days before, and that contract handled the other half of the field replacement cost.
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Plus, NC State was given 1,500 complimentary tickets to the concert.
University spokesperson Lauren Barker told The N&O that the school is “still completing financial reconciliation with our partners, so final [financial] figures aren’t available yet. However, we’re pleased with the strong performance of both concerts and expect them to have a positive impact.”
Kahan clearly felt good about the event too, joking with concertgoers that “NC State is better than Duke and UNC.”
This story was originally published July 30, 2026 at 3:25 PM with the headline “How much did NC State make from the Noah Kahan concert at Carter-Finley Stadium?.”
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