Orianthi facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Orianthi
Orianthi performing in 2017
Born	Orianthi Penny Panagaris (1985-01-22) 22 January 1985 (age 40) Adelaide, South Australia, Australia
Occupation	Musician singer songwriter
Years active	1999–present
Musical career
Genres	Pop rock hard rock alternative rock pop punk blues rock alternative metal
Instruments	Guitar vocals
Labels	Frontiers Robo Geffen Spinefarm 19

Orianthi Penny Panagaris (born January 22, 1985), known simply as Orianthi, is a talented Australian guitarist, singer, and songwriter. Her first hit song, "According to You", was released in 2009. It became very popular in Japan, Australia, and the US. Her second album, Believe, came out later that year.

Elle magazine recognized her as one of the "12 Greatest Female Electric Guitarists" in 2009. She also won the "2010 Breakthrough Guitarist of the Year" award from Guitar International magazine.

Life and Music Journey

Early Years and Musical Start

Orianthi Penny Panagaris was born in Adelaide, Australia. She started playing piano when she was three years old. Her father encouraged her to switch to acoustic guitar at age six.

When she was eleven, she began playing electric guitar. By age 15, she was focused on writing her own songs. This is when her professional music career truly began. She had been playing in bands since she was 14. She even performed on stage with famous guitarist Steve Vai when she was 15.

Orianthi met and played music with Carlos Santana when she was 18. He invited her to join him on stage at his concert in Adelaide in 2003.

First Album and Big Moves

Orianthi released her first album, Violet Journey, on her own in 2005. She wrote all the songs and played guitar, sang, and even played drums on most of them. She also produced and mixed the album herself.

Carlos Santana helped Orianthi get noticed by Paul Reed Smith, which led to her getting guitar endorsements. Orianthi then moved to Los Angeles. She signed with Geffen Records in 2006 and joined a management company called 19 Entertainment.

She also appeared in a commercial for Panasonic. Her music was featured in the song "Now or Never" for Bratz: The Movie. She performed at the Eric Clapton Crossroads Guitar Festival. She even opened for Steve Vai during his US tour.

Becoming a Star

Orianthi performed with Carrie Underwood as her lead guitarist at the 51st Grammy Awards in February 2009. After this performance, Michael Jackson's team contacted Orianthi. They asked her to audition for his "This Is It" concerts.

Orianthi became Michael Jackson's lead guitarist. She attended all rehearsals for the concerts before his passing. She later shared how Michael Jackson chose her:

I don't know exactly why he picked me, but he watched my YouTube videos and loved them. He had his choice of guitar players, but I came in and played the 'Beat It' solo for him. Afterward he was so happy he got up and grabbed my arm and started walking up and down the stage area with me. He said, 'Can you play once for me?' and hired me that night. I wish he was still around. He made me believe in myself more, and I learned so much. Going into it, I thought it would be all about playing guitar solos. But the majority of it was playing chords and funky rhythms.

She played and sang at Michael Jackson's memorial service, which was shown live around the world on July 7, 2009. She also appears in the film Michael Jackson's This Is It. This movie shows the rehearsals for the tour. Orianthi also presented an award at the 2009 American Music Awards that Michael Jackson won after his death. She played guitar on "We Are the World 25 for Haiti" and on the song "Monster" from the 2010 album Michael.

Orianthi's Solo Music

Orianthi began working on her first major album, Believe, in 2007. It was released in October 2009. This album included her worldwide hit song "According to You". This song became very popular on the radio and reached high spots on music charts. It even earned platinum status in the US and Australia.

Her exciting instrumental rock song "Highly Strung", featuring Steve Vai, became a popular video online. Her song "Suffocated" was also featured in the video game Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock.

Orianthi appeared on several TV shows, including American Idol in March 2010. In 2010, she toured a lot, performing her own shows in the US, Japan, Australia, and Malaysia. She also opened for other artists like John Mayer and Adam Lambert.

In October 2011, she released a five-song EP called Fire. These songs later appeared on her third album, Heaven in This Hell, which came out in March 2013.

In 2020, Orianthi signed a new record deal with Frontiers Records. Her album O was released on November 6, 2020. This was her first studio album in seven years. The album was produced by Marti Frederiksen.

In January 2022, Orianthi announced a live DVD and album. In March, she shared the title for her fifth album, Rock Candy. On July 15, 2022, Live from Hollywood was released. Her album Rock Candy then came out on October 14, 2022.

In 2024, Orianthi released the song First Time Blues with Joe Bonamassa. On June 17, 2025, Orianthi released her album Some Kind of Feeling. The first song from this album was "Attention", released on May 16, 2025.

Working with Other Artists

Orianthi has worked with many different artists. She was featured on Allison Iraheta's song "Don't Waste the Pretty". She also played on Fefe Dobson's song "Can't Breathe".

She recorded for the song "Sadda Haq" for a 2011 Bollywood film soundtrack called Rockstar. This song became very popular in India.

Orianthi joined the music group Hollywood Vampires on their song "Whole Lotta Love" in 2015. In October 2016, she performed with Richie Sambora at the NRL Grand Final.

On September 29, 2017, Orianthi and Richie Sambora released an EP called Rise under the name RSO. They released another EP, Making History, in December 2017. Their album Radio Free America came out in May 2018.

Orianthi also appears on the song "Limelight" from Don Felder's album American Rock 'n' Roll, released in April 2019.

Touring with Bands

Orianthi performing with Alice Cooper in 2012

On August 29, 2011, Orianthi was announced as Alice Cooper's new guitarist. She was the first female member of his band. Orianthi went on two world tours with Alice Cooper. She left the band in June 2014.

Orianthi has also played guitar for other stars like Michael Bolton and Dave Stewart. She performed with Chris Brown at the 2013 Billboard Music Awards. On December 8, 2013, she honored Carlos Santana by performing at the Kennedy Center Honors Gala.

She spent much of 2013–2015 touring with Dave Stewart. In 2014, she joined Richie Sambora for his solo tour. In 2016, they toured together as RSO.

In late 2024, it was announced that Orianthi would rejoin Alice Cooper for the Too Close for Comfort Tour in February 2025. However, Orianthi had to cancel this tour due to a leg injury. Because of this injury, she performed sitting down at PRS's 40th anniversary show.

Helping Others

Orianthi supports Little Kids Rock, a group that helps kids learn music. She met students from the program in 2010. The kids gave her an autographed acoustic guitar, and she joined the organization's board.

In 2025, at PRS's 40th anniversary show, Orianthi played with Dany Villarreal from the band The Warning. After their song, Orianthi gave her special PRS signature guitar to Villarreal.

Music Albums

Solo Albums

• Believe (2009)
• Heaven in This Hell (2013)
• O (2020)
• Rock Candy (2022)
• Some Kind of Feeling (2025)

RSO Albums

• Radio Free America (2018)

Movies and TV Shows

Awards and Recognitions

Musical Gear

Guitars

• PRS Custom 22
• PRS Custom 24
• PRS SE Custom 24
• PRS SE Singlecut
• Jackson KV2& KV5
• Jackson DX10
• Ibanez RG Series
• Gibson Les Paul (used early on)
• Gibson SG (used early on)
• Garrison & Taylor Acoustics
• Duesenberg Starplayer TV, a gift from Dave Stewart
• PRS SE Orianthi (her own special guitar model)

She also has a unique PRS Custom 24 guitar called "MJ". It was made for the This Is It concerts and is decorated with Swarovski crystals.

Amplifiers

• Orange Amplification
• ENGL (used for This Is It)
• EVH 5150III
• Marshall
• Mesa Boogie

See also

In Spanish: Orianthi Panagaris para niños