Music Features
Artist to Watch: Orianthi Rocking the Pop World
You may have heard her referred to as Michael Jackson's guitar player. Which is no doubt true—up-and-coming Orianthi was signed on to tour with Jackson on his major comeback tour and gained recognition for her appearance in This Is It after his untimely death. She also grabbed worldwide attention when she performed a collaborative version of "We are the World" at Jackson's memorial, which raked in more than 31 million viewers.
But 24-year-old Australian native Orianthi Panagaris, is breaking away from the stereotype of being just a guitar player for the King of Pop with her second album Believe, with the first single “According to You” released on Interscope Records peaking at No. 6 on the Billboard charts after its debut in late 2009.
Learning to play acoustic guitar at age six, Orianthi has also shared the stage with Steve Vai, Carlos Santana, Prince, Eric Clapton, and Carrie Underwood and has recently lended collaborations for the Adam Lambert and Mary J. Blige. But Orianthi's big break happened when Jackson saw her on YouTube. The rest is history.
So what makes this pop belle different from the Natasha Bedingfields and Fergies of the world? On paper, she looks almost too good to be true for someone her age. Well, she’s the whole package. Instead of sticking some half-rate guitar player with good looks and mediocre vocals, Orianthi actually delivers a stellar vocal performance along with her unworldly guitar skills—she proves on this album why she was named one of the 12 Greatest Female Electric Guitarists of All Time by Elle.
The album carries a combination of poppy, up-tempo tracks like “According to You” and “Bad News,” harder rock songs like “Suffocated,” and softer, heartfelt melodies such as “Feels Like Home,”—with this mix, the record is enjoyable from start to finish. While Orianthi plays it safe in her vocal range, she knows her limits—she’s no Mariah Carey, but more of a Kelly Clarkson rocker vocalist. Her epic guitar riffs and solos add edge to what would have otherwise been a typical pop album. With an equally talented backing band behind her, she’s really got something here. She knows her niche, and if she continues at this rate, she’ll be in the ranks of the best.
