Frances Whitney is an absolute fucking star. . . . We saw T. Swift play her first L.A. show on that same stage . . . and that’s the kind of energy she gives off. She’s a great songwriter. An incredible presence on stage. . . . Do yourself a favor and get on the Frances Whitney bandwagon sooner than later.
L.A. Underground
Frances Whitney is a stunningly talented new indie singer-songwriter who I firmly believe is destined for stardom. ✨ I’ve basically become the unofficial leader of the “Franatics,” i.e., her TikTok fan club. 😊 Here are some links:
- Stream “Still Have July”! 🔥🔥🔥And spread the word! Seriously: everyone who hears this song, loves it. Major “song of the summer” vibes!
- Join my Discord with the Franatics role.
- My YouTube playlist of Frances covers, as sung on her TikTok Lives. Includes songs by Taylor Swift, Bob Dylan, Chappell Roan, Tom Petty, Miley Cyrus, Hozier, Kacey Musgraves, The Lumineers & more.
- Spotify and Apple Music playlists with all of Frances’s released original songs, including her 3 current singles + 6 older, harder-to-find songs (listed under “daisythedog” on Spotify, “Frances Lee” on Apple Music).
- Video of Frances’s amazing concert on June 11 at Winston House in Venice, California.
- Video of a fan Q&A with Frances on my TikTok Live on July 1.
- Dropbox link for files sent to radio stations
- My videos about Frances’s music (including some awesome covers & unreleased original songs), split up into several different TikTok playlists:
- Frances Whitney (general)
- Frances on stage
- “Still Have July”😎
- Frances🤝Chappell
- Frances🤝Brandi🌈 (i.e., videos of Frances where I’ve tagged Brandi Carlile)
- My Frances Whitney Masterdoc / “TED Talk”:
- Reviews and articles about Frances’s music:
- L.A. Underground: “Frances Whitney is an absolute fucking star. . . . There is no doubt about it. She is built different. The minute she stepped on stage it’s as if the equilibrium in the atmosphere shifted. . . . We saw T. Swift play her first L.A. show on the same stage [in 2004] . . . and that’s the kind of energy she gives off. . . . Just do yourself a favor and get on the Frances Whitney bandwagon sooner than later. So you can brag about it some day like we flex about Taylor.”
- Pop Passion Music Blog (7/5): “Frances Whitney is a force to be reckoned with, using 2024 to kickstart her career with an undeniable bang. . . . [She is] one of the industry’s most intriguing ‘artists to watch.’”
- Aipate: “A great talent has to be exalted and, for an enormously gifted artist like Frances Whitney, raving on about her talent is the least we can do.”
- Lefuturewave: “The minute Frances starts to sing, you know you’ve found a good artist.”
- Pop Passion Music Blog (3/29): “Frances Whitney has kicked her career off on a strong note . . . showcasing a lyricism that will resonate with listeners across the globe . . . [and] mellifluous vocals. . . . [She] is an alt-pop singer-songwriter on the rise.”
- Our Era Magazine: “Through her vulnerability and honesty, Whitney fosters a sense of solidarity within her audience, offering comfort to those navigating similar struggles.”
- WRUV 90.1 FM: “‘Easy Street’ . . . is a strong debut for this alt-pop-singer-songwriter . . . [and] a promising glimpse for what is to come for this new artist!”
- Sheesh Media: “Frances Whitney has made a significant impact in the singer/songwriter community this summer. . . . [She] strikes a beautiful balance between folk, country, and singer-songwriter genres, creating a sound that is both energetic and melancholic. Her polished sound, combined with her growing momentum on social media, makes Frances Whitney an artist to watch this year.”
- (More links & videos to come!)
Although I’m unofficially “Frances Whitney Nation” now, I had never heard of Frances until April 5, when my mindless scrolling on TikTok while getting a late-night snack landed me on her TikTok Live. When she sang this original song, I was instantly hooked:
I was stunned. TikTok Live is full of aspiring musicians playing guitar, singing Taylor Swift covers & such, and they often have lovely voices — but they rarely jump off the screen as special. Frances was entirely different. I felt exactly what Zac Tuinei describes in his Easy Street review:
“From the seemingly endless selection of aspiring singers and songwriters on Tik Tok, Frances Whitney just immediately stood out from the crowd.”
Fashionably Early, 3/22/2024
Indeed. Frances’s voice is gorgeous, her vocal control insane, and her songwriting off-the-charts great. Happening upon her TikTok Live felt like wandering into a Seattle coffee shop in 2002, or a rural Vermont venue in 2017, to find a young Brandi Carlile or Noah Kahan performing to a small audience, and immediately clocking them as future stars.
How could could someone this talented still be relatively undiscovered? And how lucky was I to have found her so early in what I genuinely believe will be a meteoric rise?(When I discovered Frances, I had roughly twice as many TikTok followers as her, which is nuts. I’m just some guy — a middle-aged lawyer dude in Colorado who likes to hear himself talk. She’s the next big thing!)
I don’t think I’ve ever said this about such a brand-new aspiring artist before, but I’m saying it now: Frances absolutely has the raw talent to be a star. A superstar, even. You know how Chappell Roan has gone from playing small festivals to commanding giant crowds in just 3 years? Or how Noah Kahan burst onto the scene with similar suddenness? That can totally happen for Frances too.
Her voice is just stunning, and her songwriting has an emotional depth & rawness that reminds me of the great singer-songwriters who annually populate my Spotify Wrapped list: Noah, Brandi, Taylor Swift, Stephen Kellogg, Olivia Rodrigo, Dar Williams, Indigo Girls, etc.
I say “brand-new” and “relatively undiscovered,” but that’s already starting to change. On May 15, Frances opened for Wasia Project at the prestigious Troubadour in West Hollywood, and by all accounts, she ate and left no crumbs, as Gen Z would say. In other words, she killed it.
Then on June 5 and 6, she opened for Katie Tupper at The Drake Underground in Toronto, as part of Canadian Music Week. (Frances isn’t Canadian – she’s from the Bay Area – but her record label is based out of Vancouver & Toronto.) The performances were incredible; stay tuned for videos.
Next, on June 11, she headlined at Winston House in Venice, California — her first proper headliner gig, at a venue with a history of showcasing talented musicians when they’re on the precipice of skyrocketing to fame. E.g., Noah Kahan in 2016, Billie Eilish in 2017, Janelle Monáe in 2018.
Mark my words, Frances is going to end up on that list. I’m flying out to L.A. (from Denver) for the Winston House show, and I fully expect to wow people someday with the fact that I once saw Frances Whitney in concert for just $17. When she’s headlining Red Rocks and selling out stadiums, that will seem CRAZY.
(Not to mention, I got a whole-ass song dedicated to me, basically! Incredible bragging rights someday, LOL.)
Here’s the full concert video. More to come soon from the Winston House show.
Anyway, here’s my edit of another unreleased song, “Biggest Fan”:
Here’s a six-song set by Frances in NYC in March 2023:
Here’s part of another beautiful unreleased original song, “Old Friends”:
And yet another unreleased original, “20-Something”:
Here’s a video compilation that I made from several of her TikTok Lives:
And here are a couple of compilations of just covers:
Are you on the Frances hype train yet? If so, here are some of those links again:
- Join my Discord with the Franatics role.
- Frances playlists on Spotify and Apple Music, including her 3 current + 6 older songs.
- My YouTube playlist of some of Frances’s covers, which are just crazy-good.
- Follow Frances on TikTok & Instagram!
- P.S. From my Discord, some examples of France’s insanely good lyricism:
“I’m getting out of the business of missing what’s weighin’ me down”
“No good love tastes like pain, and losing yourself’s not a price worth paying”
“A little bored, a little blue when I’m untethered / The road is lonely but it goes on forever”
Something I Wanted
“You were a socialist at this time last year
Now you’re a socialite sipping craft beer”“God, it’s such a rush; please just try it
Stay Up With Me
Bathroom acoustics, Lana’s ‘Ultraviolence’
I’m spillin’ my secrets, you spilled your fries
I would die happy under tonight’s sky”
“I’m staring at the back of your head
Past Life
Your neck lit up red by an eastside sunset
That’s warning me today will end
And I’m wantin’ you to touch me
While knowing that’s just a losing bet
I’ve got a history of ruining what’s innocent
When I’m caught in between Desperate and genuine
I’ve crossed so many lines
But for you I’ll stay behind
And hope that I had you in a past life“
“Some meditation teacher said
Easy Street
‘Close your eyes and send some light’
So I sent you what’s left of mine
Inside my mind”
“Is it your turn or mine
Easy Street (bridge)
To overromanticize
What’s average at best in the perfect light
You’re my little evil twin
I will never love again
You say ‘come back to me, I need you under my skin’
Is it your turn or mine
To kneel by the bedside
And beg forgiveness for sins we didn′t commit
‘Sorry’ is our sacred prayer
We are going nowhere
Over and over and over and over again”
“Holding you is easy, but
Holding On
Holding on’s trying to fall back asleep
into a dream that slipped away”
“My eyes don’t look like mine tonight
Hollow
The bathroom mirror wakes me up
By shouting loud
That I told my mom I’d be careful
and I’ve been anything but.
For an anxious girl,
you’ve sure got a lot of nerve”