Because it was as if one musical icon was anointing another, Michael Jackson will always be a foundational part of Orianthi’s incredible rise as one of the premiere electric guitarists of her generation. Blown away by her inventive, otherworldly skills with chords, funky rhythms and her inimitable solos, MJ hired her for his 2009 This Is It concert series, and she participated in all the rehearsals.
That same year, Orianthi’s solo career started heating up as well, driven by the international success of “According to You,” her debut single as a singer/songwriter on Geffen Records which hit the Top 20 on the Billboard Hot 100, the Top Five in Japan and the Top Ten in her native Australia. In addition to being named one of the 12 Greatest Female Electric Guitarists by Elle Magazine, Orianthi was Guitar International magazine’s 2010 Breakthrough Guitarist of Year. “According to You” remains her signature hit, with over 37M streams on Spotify and 26M views on YouTube.
After Jackson’s untimely passing, the multi-talented artist quickly became one of the industry’s most in demand live performers, touring with, among others, Alice Cooper (three years), Dave Stewart (two years), and most significantly – and sometimes under the name RSO – traveling the world on and off for eight years with Richie Sambora.
She appeared on “American Idol,” performed “Fine China” with Chris Brown at the Billboard Music Awards and in 2013 paid tribute at the Kennedy Center Honors to Carlos Santana – ten years after the legendary guitarist first invited her onstage with him to jam when she was 18. For Orianthi, who
performed her first stage show for Steve Vai at 15, these whirlwind years also included studio work with Jason Derulo, Adam Lambert, Mary J. Blige, One Republic and Michael Bolton.
Amidst all the demand for her galvanizing guitarisma, Orianthi never lost sight of her original goal to be a solo recording and touring artist. In addition to her independently released 2007 debut album Violet Journey and Geffen collection Believe (2009), over the past decade, she has released Heaven in This Hell, O and Rock Candy. She spent most of 2023 touring as a solo artist, including numerous dates throughout the U.S. and several shows in Japan.
Though Orianthi will always be celebrated for her ability to rock studios and packed arenas alike with her blazing style, her signing with Woodward Avenue Records for a series of singles leading up to a full-length album marks an exciting return to her first stylistic love – a more organic, 60s-70s rock blues vibe.
Recorded with her longtime band of drummer Elias Malin, bassist Justin Andres and keyboardist Carey Frank, her first 2024 release is “First Time Blues” featuring Joe Bonamassa, which the guitarist describes as “that first time you feel the pain of something different happening to you.” She adds, “You have a childlike love of life and don’t want to lose that innocence, but life can try to take it away from you, so it’s important to hold onto that. It’s a song that can take you back to being excited to wake up and feel grateful and excited about where you are.” Her second lead single is “Bad For Each Other,” an emotional barnburner about being addicted to loving the wrong person.
Reflecting on the full album project, she adds, “The opportunity to perform so many of my own shows this past year has inspired me to reflect more personally on my life and chronicle my feelings in these songs. Some were written a few years ago, some a year ago, and others quite recently – yet they all capture everything that I’ve been through in the past to who I am today, as I’ve gone through different changes. My mindset has shifted significantly based on these experiences, the same way as you’re forever changed from being in a relationship. You’re never the same person you were before.”
Throughout her recording career, Orianthi has benefited from the guidance and expertise of numerous top veteran producers – including Dave Stewart, Ron Fair, Howard Benson. RedOne, Marti Frederickson and Jacob Bunton. On the new songs she’s recording for Woodward Avenue, Orianthi comes full circle, self-producing for the first time since Violet Journey and once again taking the advice of her old friend Prince, who once told her, “You don’t want people putting outfits on you.” That advice could extend more literally to her status as one of rock’s greatest purveyors of alternately classic and loud millennial hippie fashion, topped with hats inspired by Jimi Hendrix and Stevie Nicks.
Orianthi says, “I loved working with all these producers, but I’ve also learned there is something authentic about picking up the guitar, getting in the studio with your band and using all my skills as a gear nut that cuts to the core of who I am. There’s something liberating about spending a lot of time alone and fixing my energy on this different wavelength, getting back to myself. I’m grateful for the freedom to do that. It’s the same with clothes. I dress how I want the song to look. My aesthetic is to reflect the energy of the song in what I wear.”
Capping a fascinating journey that began with her taking her dad’s Gibson 125 to school in Adelaide, Australia to play in front of anyone she could, Orianthi has, in addition to four Paul Reed Smith (PRS) guitars that constantly sell out, a signature Gibson S-J200, which is the second biggest
selling artist acoustic of all time next to Bob Dylan and Elvis Presley Signature models. She also has her own coffee line and is developing lines of clothes (naturally) and jewelry in addition to a signature vodka.
“I owe a lot to my dad for shaping my musical sensibilities growing up,” says Orianthi, who studied classical piano before switching to guitar, with his encouragement, at age six. She enrolled at Tafe University in Adelaide at age 10 to learn classical guitar theory. “Through his incredible record collection, he introduced me to Eric Clapton, Cream, Elvis, B.B. King, Roy Orbison, Freddie King, Santana, Hendrix’s Band of Gypsys album, and The Beatles. Sports and guitar playing was a way to bond with him. My mum was listening to the Rat Pack, Tom Jones, Richard Marx and Michael Bolton – so I had a wide range of music in my life.
“Besides being grateful to my parents for providing these foundations, I’m honored to call musicians like Steve Vai, Carlos Santana and Billy Gibbons – friends and mentors, and am grateful that they’re always around to offer a word of encouragement during the challenging times. I hope as my career progresses, I can continue to live up to the inspiration they have given me for so many years.”