‘The Christmas Song’ (which originally included the subtitle (Merry Christmas To You)) is arguably one of the three or four best known Christmas tunes, the title itself giving it something of a definitive quality. It’s been covered hundreds of times (the exact number is unknown) across various genres since 1946. So why did Noah choose to record this ubiquitous song?

“The song is very nostalgic for my generation. Every year without fail whenever I’m on TikTok during the holiday season, I hear three songs over and over: ‘So This Christmas’ (‘Happy Xmas (War Is Over)’), ‘All I Want For Christmas Is You’, and ‘The Christmas Song’ by Nat ‘King’ Cole. When people post about how they felt when they were at middle school during the holiday season and their yearning for those days, this is often the song they chose to express that. And generally, who doesn’t like ‘The Christmas Song’? I love it, and when we were thinking of what songs to record this was the first song that popped into my head. I hope people will enjoy my version.”

Noah’s second Christmas offering is a duet version of ‘Sleigh Ride’, originally recorded and released as an instrumental by the Boston Pops in 1949, with vocal versions by The Ronettes and Johnny Mathis being amongst the best known. For this recording, Noah is joined by fellow Canadian and much praised alternative soul artist Avery Raquel.

“When we were discussing which songs to choose for these Christmas recordings, we quickly decided on ‘The Christmas Song’ and that the second recording was going to be a duet. The trickiest part of duets is of course determining the duet partner. I had some ideas but wasn’t familiar with Avery until she was suggested to me, and I knew as soon as I heard her that our voices would blend perfectly. She was great to work with and for me it’s a perfect pairing – I think when people hear it, they’ll agree!”

About to turn 22 in January 2026, Noah Kosta is keen to move beyond being known as a ‘kid crooner’, to being regarded as a more mature artist. “The kid crooner persona was something we came up with as I was rolling along with this style of music. I started doing jazz in this crooner vocal style when I was 13/14, and obviously at that age you’re considered a kid, so that’s followed me throughout my career so far. When I do a show and they introduce me as the kid crooner Noah Kosta, I do say “well I’m not really a kid crooner anymore, so please just introduce me as Noah Kosta”.”

Noah was going to begin his final year of a degree in music education at the University of Toronto in September of this year, but decided to pause his degree in order to focus on performing and recording. “I had an opportunity to work with someone very experienced in artist development and management, the sort of opportunity that doesn’t come along very often, and I didn’t want to lose out on this. It really felt like taking some time off from university and focusing on my singing without distraction was the thing to do.”

Asked about his goals for the next year and beyond, he says he envisions “a new image for me, moving away from being an entirely 1950s, Sinatra-inspired singer in the 2020s, and towards a modern jazz-pop sound. We’re recording an EP, and I’ve also recorded two Christmas songs we’ll be releasing soon. We’re working on getting a band together, and I want to get out there as much as possible in the next twelve months and be the best I can possibly be.”

His existing fans needn’t worry about him abandoning the big band, classic jazz vocal style; his intention is to continue with that repertoire too, featuring exciting arrangements of the type of jazz standards he’s built his career with to give them a more modern feeling with lush strings and brass. The forthcoming EP will include contemporary arrangements of songs including ‘That’s Life’ and ‘Angel Eyes’, as Noah leans into the nostalgic style he’s at home with while experimenting and stretching his vocal style. 

“Those songs that I’ve been singing for the past decade will always be a part of my foundation and I’ll always be influenced by the greats from that generation. Whenever someone tells me that they like that I’m not just doing the songs of that era as a recreation of it, that I’m singing them in a way that’s my own and brings them into the modern era, it assures me that I can keep singing them. I’m also going to continue singing modern pop-jazz that I sing my way, and not like someone else.”

Lest people think Noah is entirely consumed by music, he’d like to assure everyone that he has a life off of the bandstand. He’s a builder of elaborate Lego structures, and sitting harmoniously alongside that kind of challenge, he’s an avid gamer and puzzle problem solver. Noah’s also a sports fan to the extent that he considered studying journalism with an idea that he might pursue music or sports reporting. “My uncle went to school with Mike Wilner, who was the radio voice of the Toronto Blue Jays for a number of years. My uncle introduced me to him in 2022, and Mike actually encouraged me NOT to go into journalism, pointing out that I’d be unlikely to get a job right away and that it could take me 20 years to get to a point where I’ve built a decent career.”

While contemporary music isn’t a major part of his diet (“but if there’s a new Justin Bieber or Taylor Swift album I’ll give them a listen!”), there’s one band in particular that hits two sweet spots for him: The 8-bit Big Band, the Grammy-winning symphonic jazz orchestra who specialise in arranging and covering video game music. “They drop an album about every three years and they have some of the best arrangements I’ve heard.” 

As for his own song writing, he says “I don’t expect myself to be at the level of Taylor Swift, but I have released a couple of songs that I’ve written, and they’re amongst my favourite work because I’m saying exactly what I want to say; one of them, no pun intended, is even called ‘All I Wanna Say’, which gave me satisfaction that my own musical idea was getting realised.”