Jack White’s odd upholstery company you’ve never heard of before his Detroit halftime show

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• From Detroit workshop to national stage: Jack White’s Thanksgiving appearance
• The unlikely origin story: upholstery, art and early experiments
  • How a trade became a creative practice
• Hidden vinyl: secret records tucked inside custom furniture
• The Upholsterers: a short-lived band and a long-lasting mystery
• Performance over profit: how branding eclipsed business sense
  • Visuals and rituals that confused customers
• Collectors, discoveries, and the records that resurfaced

Detroit’s own Jack White will headline the Thanksgiving Halftime Show on November 27, as the Lions host the Green Bay Packers. The 86th Annual Thanksgiving Day Classic kicks off at 1 p.m. ET on FOX, and the native Detroiter brings a surprising backstory to the field: before fame, he ran a quirky upholstery shop that hid rare vinyl inside furniture.

From Detroit workshop to national stage: Jack White’s Thanksgiving appearance

Jack White’s career has many chapters — garage-rock fame with The White Stripes, a solo catalog, and the Third Man Records empire. Now he’ll perform during one of football’s most-watched traditions. The halftime slot puts a spotlight not only on his music but on his Detroit roots.

• Event: Thanksgiving Halftime Show, Detroit Lions vs. Green Bay Packers.
• Date & time: November 27 at 1 p.m. ET.
• Network: FOX.

The unlikely origin story: upholstery, art and early experiments

Before stadiums and vinyl presses, White learned the craft of furniture making. He trained under an upholsterer in Detroit, moved through workshops, and eventually opened his own studio in the mid-1990s. That hands-on period shaped his taste for object-making and performance.

How a trade became a creative practice

• He treated furniture as sculpture.
• Delivery and branding were theatrical and consistent.
• Bills and paperwork were part of the act, not just commerce.

White’s approach blurred the line between small business and art project. His shop’s look — from business cards to uniforms to a bright delivery van — was its own statement.

Hidden vinyl: secret records tucked inside custom furniture

One of White’s more eccentric moves was to place limited-press records inside pieces he made. These were not simple inserts. The discs were concealed within the foam or structure, often wrapped or covered to avoid casual detection.

• The first pressing appeared around 2000.
• Another small run accompanied a 2004 anniversary for Muldoon Studios.
• Pressings were deliberately scarce, sometimes just 100 copies.

White and his collaborator went so far as to press transparent vinyl and use subtle packaging to reduce the odds the records would be found. The intent felt equal parts prank, performance, and preservation.

The Upholsterers: a short-lived band and a long-lasting mystery

During that era, White and his apprentice formed an experimental duo. They released music under a name tied to their trade. Rather than sell the records in stores, they embedded them inside commissioned furniture.

• The project mixed garage rock with the tactile craft of upholstery.
• There was no wide commercial release.
• Discoveries of these discs have been rare and headline-making.

By hiding music in furniture, the pair created a scavenger-hunt quality around their art. It turned functional objects into potential archives.

Performance over profit: how branding eclipsed business sense

White has acknowledged that he was never motivated chiefly by money. That attitude informed many of his early business choices and made the shop feel more like a stage than a steady enterprise.

Visuals and rituals that confused customers

• Color-coordinated business cards and uniforms in yellow and black.
• A distinctive delivery van that resembled municipal vehicles.
• Invoices written with crayons and a playful, cartoonish tone.

Some clients were bemused, even skeptical. But those who appreciated the mix of craft and spectacle sought him out. The aesthetic became part of his myth.

Collectors, discoveries, and the records that resurfaced

Despite the expectation that hidden discs would perish inside foam, at least a couple of them have turned up. When found, the records spark excitement among fans and collectors.

• Recovered copies are rare and often make headlines.
• The search for others continues among collectors.
• Each find adds context to White’s early creative experiments.

The idea that dozens of pieces of furniture could contain a record keeps a curious subculture alive: people check estate pieces, attics, and garage-sale sofas, hoping to uncover a slice of underground history.

Photo by Scott Legato/Getty Images