Exclusive Interview with Orianthi
We heard about Orianthi through Carlos Santana, who heralded her as the next great guitarist. When a rock icon like Carlos Santana speaks, you have to listen. Then the girl made an even bigger impact when the legendary Steve Vai had her open for him and she joined him on stage. If these two rock guitarists are enamored by her, she might be good. But the icing on the cake was when Michael Jackson selected her, out of 1,000 of viable guitarists, to be his guitarists for his comeback tour. We sat down for an exclusive interview with the Australian taking the US rock world by storm.
How has the current Glam Nation tour been going?
Orianthi: Awesome. It has been really great. The crowds have been cool and it is great to be on tour with Adam [Lambert] and Allison [Iraheta]. They are both great performers, so it is a good tour to be on.
What has been the best tour stop?
Orianthi: New York was pretty cool, but the first show in Wilkes Barre was the best. It was the first show and I was excited to get out there and do my thing. That show will keep as a great memory. New York was also great. We had two shows at the Nokia [Theater] and the crowd was great, everyone was standing up. The great thing about this venue [The Borgata Event Center] is that everyone is standing in front of the stage. I love that! Sometimes when they are seated, our goal is to get them out of their seats by the end of our set. We played a casino a few days back and we were able to get the people up. You always feel you have done your job as a musician when that happens - you want people to have fun.
How have your new songs gone over in a live setting?
Orianthi: Great. A lot of people are singing along to Shut Up and Kiss Me, which is great and According To You is always fun song to watch people sing along to. My set is usually a simulated semi-rock pop show with lots of guitar solos. It is a lot of fun for me soloing out so I make them [the solos] a little longer than the ones on the record, which is cool. On the record, you need to keep the songs around the three minute 30 second time frame, but live I can throw that number out the window. Sometimes I look at the crowd and if they look like they have had enough soloing, I stop it. [laughs]
You won't get that from us, we love solos. This is the first year we are without Michael Jackson and you were his chosen guitarist for his big comeback tour entitled This Is It. What lessons did you learn from him?
Orianthi: To not be nervous, project your energy and have fun. He was so encouraging. It was a tough day [anniversary of Jackson's death] for me, but it was also good to reflect on the wonderful memories I had meeting everyone. I reach out to everyone in the This Is It family. We had such a bond that will last forever and I am grateful that I got that time with him. His spirit is going to live on within everyone that was chosen to take part in the tour. We are going to continue on with his message and keep on playing and inspiring people.
How was it meeting him for the first time?
Orianthi: CRAZY!
Were you nervous?
Orianthi: Yea I was especially playing Beat It for him for the first time. I walked into a room and he was seated on a couch. He was watching me as I cranked up my guitar. I prayed to God beforehand that I could get through it. I looked down at my guitar and thought "How do I play guitar again"? [laughs] But I got through it and he hired me that night. That was awesome. He was super sweet and I had such a great time.
His fans seem to embrace you. A lot of his fans say they learned about you from the This Is It movie.
Orianthi: Yea, so many of his fans are sweet, encouraging and supportive. I am a big fan of Michael's and going into it as a fan of his music, you just want to make him happy.
I was reading on your message board and one person asked, what is the best way to play electric guitar like you and Carlos [Santana]? What would you say to that person?
Orianthi: The best way to is to play as much as you can. I listened to records, studied music and learned everyone of Carlos' leads. Then I learned all of the chords and sing along to them. Then I would watch his videos and how Steve Vai would play. The way they approach their playing is very different from one another. Everyone has their own personality when playing guitar. As much as you try and copy someone, you will still have your own fingerprint on that. You should study guitar players that you love, but then step away from them. Don't listen to them for a while and play in a room with an amp by yourself. Then you can find your own voice.
You have been called the female guitarist of this generation. What other female guitarist inspire you?
Orianthi: Definitely Jennifer Batten and Bonnie Raitt. I grew up listening to a lot of blues players, like I said Bonnie Raitt. That is what I sort of gravitate towards. I grew up listening to B.B. King, Steve Ray Vaughan, and Carlos Santana. Only recently have I started listening to Steve Vai and Eddie Van Halen. I think Jennifer Batten is an incredible player. If you are a good player, it doesn't matter if you are female or male, but I do want to inspire more girls to keep at it. I hope they see me on TV and think "I want to do that too." I used to get picked on because I was the only girl standing in line with the guys trying to get a lead part in band in the school band. I want people, guys or girls, to just stick with it.
How do you write a song?
Orianthi: It is always different. Sometimes I have a guitar riff and I sing something over it. Or I will have some chords and then I'll sing over those chords. Other times a melody pops into my head and I am singing the chorus for a while then I think "I better write some music to that." It is always very different and I think that is what is cool about the songwriting process. I never just go into a room and write a song because they are usually the worst songs ever. When I hear that son,g I can tell I forced myself into a room and wrote that song.
Some critics suggest you should have two persona: a guitar playing side and a pop singer side. They claim the guitar waters down the pop and vise versa. How would you respond to those critics?
Orianthi: I would enjoy being just a guitar player — collaborating with different people and just playing the guitar. It is a little more freeing. But I also LOVE fronting my own band and doing what I am doing. To be able to do both, is really awesome. I enjoy playing solos on Adam's records or Allison's records. That stuff is really cool for me because I have been focusing more on the guitar than singing for most of my life. I started to sing when I was seven, but I then put it aside. I would hum along to stuff, but I didn't start singing again until I was 15 in a cover band and singing Top 40 stuff. I really enjoy just playing the guitar sometimes. I like singing, but guitar playing is more my thing.
You can connect more when you add lyrics to the guitars. I have listened to a lot of instrumental guitar records and Top 40 and it was only natural for me to blend the two. However, the next record I am thinking about is going to be more dramatic rock. I have been listening to a lot of Muse and Stone Temple Pilots. I think it is important to evolve and never stay the same from record to record. I don't want to bore myself.
On Believe II, you added a cover version of John Waits Missing You. What made you choose that song?
Orianthi: I am a big 80s fan like David Lee Roth, Van Halen. I love that song. I was looking at my 80's playlist and that song was on it so we decided to go for it. I know there have been other covers of that track, but I thought it was fun to play so why not do it?
Who would you love to share a stage with...living or dead?
Orianthi: I would have loved to share the stage with Stevie Ray Vaughan. I am a huge fan of his. Stevie Ray, Steve Vai, and Carlos Santana are my three idols. You never stop learning off those people...Oh, also Elvis. I am a big Elvis fan!
We want to thank Orianthi for taking time to chat with us. You can get her current album Believe II on her website. For more Orianthi reading, check out our show review here.
How has the current Glam Nation tour been going?
Orianthi: Awesome. It has been really great. The crowds have been cool and it is great to be on tour with Adam [Lambert] and Allison [Iraheta]. They are both great performers, so it is a good tour to be on.
What has been the best tour stop?
Orianthi: New York was pretty cool, but the first show in Wilkes Barre was the best. It was the first show and I was excited to get out there and do my thing. That show will keep as a great memory. New York was also great. We had two shows at the Nokia [Theater] and the crowd was great, everyone was standing up. The great thing about this venue [The Borgata Event Center] is that everyone is standing in front of the stage. I love that! Sometimes when they are seated, our goal is to get them out of their seats by the end of our set. We played a casino a few days back and we were able to get the people up. You always feel you have done your job as a musician when that happens - you want people to have fun.
How have your new songs gone over in a live setting?
Orianthi: Great. A lot of people are singing along to Shut Up and Kiss Me, which is great and According To You is always fun song to watch people sing along to. My set is usually a simulated semi-rock pop show with lots of guitar solos. It is a lot of fun for me soloing out so I make them [the solos] a little longer than the ones on the record, which is cool. On the record, you need to keep the songs around the three minute 30 second time frame, but live I can throw that number out the window. Sometimes I look at the crowd and if they look like they have had enough soloing, I stop it. [laughs]
You won't get that from us, we love solos. This is the first year we are without Michael Jackson and you were his chosen guitarist for his big comeback tour entitled This Is It. What lessons did you learn from him?
Orianthi: To not be nervous, project your energy and have fun. He was so encouraging. It was a tough day [anniversary of Jackson's death] for me, but it was also good to reflect on the wonderful memories I had meeting everyone. I reach out to everyone in the This Is It family. We had such a bond that will last forever and I am grateful that I got that time with him. His spirit is going to live on within everyone that was chosen to take part in the tour. We are going to continue on with his message and keep on playing and inspiring people.
How was it meeting him for the first time?
Orianthi: CRAZY!
Were you nervous?
Orianthi: Yea I was especially playing Beat It for him for the first time. I walked into a room and he was seated on a couch. He was watching me as I cranked up my guitar. I prayed to God beforehand that I could get through it. I looked down at my guitar and thought "How do I play guitar again"? [laughs] But I got through it and he hired me that night. That was awesome. He was super sweet and I had such a great time.
His fans seem to embrace you. A lot of his fans say they learned about you from the This Is It movie.
Orianthi: Yea, so many of his fans are sweet, encouraging and supportive. I am a big fan of Michael's and going into it as a fan of his music, you just want to make him happy.
I was reading on your message board and one person asked, what is the best way to play electric guitar like you and Carlos [Santana]? What would you say to that person?
Orianthi: The best way to is to play as much as you can. I listened to records, studied music and learned everyone of Carlos' leads. Then I learned all of the chords and sing along to them. Then I would watch his videos and how Steve Vai would play. The way they approach their playing is very different from one another. Everyone has their own personality when playing guitar. As much as you try and copy someone, you will still have your own fingerprint on that. You should study guitar players that you love, but then step away from them. Don't listen to them for a while and play in a room with an amp by yourself. Then you can find your own voice.
You have been called the female guitarist of this generation. What other female guitarist inspire you?
Orianthi: Definitely Jennifer Batten and Bonnie Raitt. I grew up listening to a lot of blues players, like I said Bonnie Raitt. That is what I sort of gravitate towards. I grew up listening to B.B. King, Steve Ray Vaughan, and Carlos Santana. Only recently have I started listening to Steve Vai and Eddie Van Halen. I think Jennifer Batten is an incredible player. If you are a good player, it doesn't matter if you are female or male, but I do want to inspire more girls to keep at it. I hope they see me on TV and think "I want to do that too." I used to get picked on because I was the only girl standing in line with the guys trying to get a lead part in band in the school band. I want people, guys or girls, to just stick with it.
How do you write a song?
Orianthi: It is always different. Sometimes I have a guitar riff and I sing something over it. Or I will have some chords and then I'll sing over those chords. Other times a melody pops into my head and I am singing the chorus for a while then I think "I better write some music to that." It is always very different and I think that is what is cool about the songwriting process. I never just go into a room and write a song because they are usually the worst songs ever. When I hear that son,g I can tell I forced myself into a room and wrote that song.
Some critics suggest you should have two persona: a guitar playing side and a pop singer side. They claim the guitar waters down the pop and vise versa. How would you respond to those critics?
Orianthi: I would enjoy being just a guitar player — collaborating with different people and just playing the guitar. It is a little more freeing. But I also LOVE fronting my own band and doing what I am doing. To be able to do both, is really awesome. I enjoy playing solos on Adam's records or Allison's records. That stuff is really cool for me because I have been focusing more on the guitar than singing for most of my life. I started to sing when I was seven, but I then put it aside. I would hum along to stuff, but I didn't start singing again until I was 15 in a cover band and singing Top 40 stuff. I really enjoy just playing the guitar sometimes. I like singing, but guitar playing is more my thing.
You can connect more when you add lyrics to the guitars. I have listened to a lot of instrumental guitar records and Top 40 and it was only natural for me to blend the two. However, the next record I am thinking about is going to be more dramatic rock. I have been listening to a lot of Muse and Stone Temple Pilots. I think it is important to evolve and never stay the same from record to record. I don't want to bore myself.
On Believe II, you added a cover version of John Waits Missing You. What made you choose that song?
Orianthi: I am a big 80s fan like David Lee Roth, Van Halen. I love that song. I was looking at my 80's playlist and that song was on it so we decided to go for it. I know there have been other covers of that track, but I thought it was fun to play so why not do it?
Who would you love to share a stage with...living or dead?
Orianthi: I would have loved to share the stage with Stevie Ray Vaughan. I am a huge fan of his. Stevie Ray, Steve Vai, and Carlos Santana are my three idols. You never stop learning off those people...Oh, also Elvis. I am a big Elvis fan!
We want to thank Orianthi for taking time to chat with us. You can get her current album Believe II on her website. For more Orianthi reading, check out our show review here.
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