Whitney is Max Kakacek and Julien Ehrlich, formerly with Smith Westerns, who got together in 2015 during a harsh winter in Chicago. They were sharing a small apartment in the city and began writing songs. The songwriting effort was shared, but Ehrlich ended up as the primary vocalist.
The duo played approximately 30 shows in 2015, usually supporting other acts, including Tobias Jesso Jr. Jesso put them in touch with Jonathan Rado, who went on to produce their first studio album, “Light Upon the Lake,” which dropped in 2016. They went on their first tour of Europe to support the release.
They released their second album, “Forever Turned Around,” in 2019. To honor these Chicago artists, Lori Lightfoot, the mayor of the city, declared August 30 to be “Whitney Day.”
Their most recent album is “SPARK,” dropped in 2022. The new release is far different from the preceding albums, moving from a folk-pop sound to something much more polished. A review says:
“ . . . Whitney passionately played music that kept its audience as well as its own members excited and grooving.”
Whitney will be at the Fillmore Silver Spring on Colesville Road in Silver Spring, a short distance from Beltsville, on December 9. Attention-getting posters are a great product to advertise events like these, which organizers can create using poster printing.