9 Famous Female Guitarists and Their Signature Guitars
Published on 18 November 2022
The highest pedestal of recognition and the ultimate dream for every guitarist is to have a signature guitar model made to their desired specs and wildest of colours. Rock musicians have always been making top of the list when it comes to artist series instruments. And since its early days, the rock scene as we know it has been dominated by men. To see a girl shred a guitar solo on stage was as rare as hen’s teeth. But then came Lita Ford, Joan Jett and Jennifer Batten and our jaws dropped. Suddenly it was possible. A different energy came to life.
That was enough to ignite a spark of inspiration in the young generation of girls dreaming of being rock stars. And these girls today are some of the most admired and respected musicians, each proudly endorsed by the industry’s best guitar manufacturers, each proudly sporting their own artist signature model. What you’re about to read is a list of insanely talented modern female guitarists and their signature guitars. Fasten your seatbelts ‘cause these women rock hard!
*We are happy to say the list is merely a fraction of the current treasury of talents and the numbers in no way suggest the hierarchy. We shall focus on those names that make the biggest waves right now.
1. Nita Strauss
Nicknamed ‘Hurricane’ due to her high-octane, energetic shredding abilities, this Californian guitarist has had a very impressive career and she’s constantly surprising us with more projects! After all, being a descendant of the Austrian classical composer Johann Strauss II must carry some pressure. One of the most active female session guitar players, Nita had been involved in a few spicy line-ups, from an all-female tribute band The Iron Maidens, Femme Fatale to LA Kiss. In 2014 she replaced Orianthi as the lead guitarist for Alice Cooper. As if that wasn’t a gig big enough for Strauss, she simultaneously composed her own solo album as well as becoming the Los Angeles Rams stadium in-house musician. As a true Hurricane, she never stops. At the beginning of 2022 Nita departed from Alice Cooper troupe only to enter another big name in the game, this time becoming the lead guitarist for Demi Lovato.
In January 2018, Nita Strauss became the first ever female Ibanez signature artist with her own model, the Ibanez JIVA10. Packed with her signature DiMarzio Pandemonium humbucker pickups and Floyd Rose tremolo, this guitar is a pure shred machine. It comes in two versions, the high spec’d Deep Space Blonde (right and left-handed options) and a budget alternative, JIVA Junior in Deep Sea Blonde (Quantum pickups set), each featuring ‘The Beaten Path’ inlays. The most recent addition to the JIVAs is made in Japan JIVAX2 in Ghost white.
2. Lzzy Hale
From a shy small-town girl who preferred to be quiet to a larger-than-life rock goddess: Lzzy Hale is the epitome of a female rockstar dream. At the age of 16, she learnt to play guitar out of necessity to fill in for her band’s constant lack of guitarists. Little did she know this was meant to be. Fronting a successful rock band Halestorm, alongside her brother, Lzzy has since become a trailblazer for women in rock, encouraging those young girls to pick up a guitar and follow in her footsteps. Aside from touring 250 days a year, Halestorm has bagged 2 Grammy awards: in 2013 for the Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance and in 2019 for Best Rock Performance. Gibson guitars quickly recognised the potential Lzzy Hale has and in 2021 announced her their first female Brand Ambassador.
As a prolific Gibson player, Lzzy naturally worked her way up to a signature artist status. The Gibson Lzzy Hale Explorerbird is a riff machine fit for the goddess herself. A blend of two iconic Gibson models: it has the body of an Explorer but the headstock of a non-reverse Firebird, it’s packed with 70’s Tribute humbuckers, gold hardware and comes in Cardinal Red and Alpine White.
3. St Vincent
Anne Erin Clark, best known as St Vincent, is one of the most unique artists of the modern rock scene. Having won 3 Grammy awards, NME awards and a number of other acclaims as well as releasing 7 studio albums, St Vincent is a personification of all things cool. Compared to the likes of David Bowie and Kate Bush by critics, St Vincent is the modern archetype of the misunderstood, quirky artist.
In 2016 Ernie Ball announced that Anne Clark had designed her signature Music Man guitar. It received a warm welcome and its unique shape was described as being made for women's bodies for comfort and providing pleasing aesthetic shape alongside superb guitar functionality.
The St Vincent Signature comes in a few versions: USA made Music Man Goldie in Cashmere, Silk Charmeuse and Velveteen finishes as well as the Original St Vincent in Vincent Blue. Equipped with 3 custom mini-humbuckers, roasted maple neck, Schaller locking tuners, Music Man modern and custom St Vincent signature inlays. Sterling by Music Man offers a budget version of this signature and comes in Stealth Black or Vincent Blue.
4. Orianthi
Australian-born guitarist extraordinaire, Orianthi Panagaris has been turning heads with her incredible talent since she was a young teenager. This guitar prodigy has shared the stage with a bunch of legendary artists, from Carlos Santana, Carrie Underwood, Steve Vai to Prince, toured the world for 4 years with Alice Cooper and scored the lead guitarist spot for Michael Jackson’s final This Is It tour. Forever associated with PRS guitars, Orianthi is one of the brand’s top artists from their roster with a bunch of signature models made to her dream specifications.
In 2013 PRS released Orianthi’s first signature SE model in Scarlet Red with characteristic letter “O” at the 12th fret.
The latest addition to Orianthi signature PRS models is the pinnacle of artist guitars if we’ve ever seen one. A true knockout, The Private Stock Orianthi Limited Edition in Blooming Lotus Glow, adorned with Lotus Vine inlays, Private Stock Eagle headstock inlay, the “O” logo on the trussrod cover and it comes equipped with 58/15 PRS humbuckers.
Although we associate her with immense electric guitar shredding, Orianthi is a sworn lover of big jumbo acoustic guitars. And to further prove her unshakeable position amongst the best in business, Orianthi teamed up with Gibson in order to create a magnificent beast: The Gibson Orianthi Sj-200 in Cherry. Featuring a AAA sitka spruce top, flamed maple back and sides paired with sleek ES-345 neck for a twist. Other personal touches include the famous “O” symbol on the headstock, ebony fretboard with lotus inlays and LR Baggs™ Orianthi Pickup System that was custom-voiced for the artist.
5. H.E.R.
Fender’s 2018 research revealed that 50% of the guitar-buying market is made up of beginner female guitarists. Times are changing fast and the music scene is starting to become filled with more and more professional female guitarists, with Fender being top of the league when it comes to promoting them. Best example is a dynamic and bedazzling R&B performer who goes by the name H.E.R (Having Everything Revealed). Born Gabriella Wilson, this American artist became recognised for her beautifully emotive playing style of smooth rhythms ornamented by slow-burning solos.
And for those who still like to think that women are in it for the glamour, H.E.R. comes in to demolish this outdated way of thinking and deliberately performs with sunglasses to make a stance: anonymity over celebrity. She would rather let her music speak for itself than her looks. And we think that 4 Grammy Awards are more than enough to prove she’s right. But if that wasn’t convincing, in 2021 H.E.R. won her first Oscar for Best Original Song in the film Judas and the Black Messiah.
It was only a matter of time before Wilson got her signature guitar. The H.E.R. Stratocaster comes in lush Chrome Glow finish with 60’s “C” shaped maple neck, alder body, anodized pickguard and Vintage Noiseless pickups. Expect effortless playing whether you’re a beginner or a pro.
6. Lari Basilio
Born into a musical household in São Paulo, Brazil, encouraged by her father, Lari picked up the guitar when she was just 8 years old. She released her first solo instrumental EP in 2011 and quickly took to the local stages. In 2014 she won the instrumental category of the Samsung E-festival and performed to a crowd of 15,000 at the Best of Blues festival in Brazil. Lari opened for guitar clinics by Paul Gilbert and Andy Timmons before she became the clinician in-demand herself. Named Brazilian virtuoso, Lari has a truly unique approach to the instrument which seamlessly combines an intricate technical proficiency with melodic and energetic phrases.
In January 2021 Ibanez released a long-expected collaboration with Lari Basilio: her first signature model, the made in Japan LB1. Spec’d with the artist herself, the LB1 makes for one ergonomically designed T-shaped axe that features ash body, Basilio signature Seymour Duncan pickups, Luminlay dots, Gotoh locking tuners, stainless steel frets and comes in Lari’s favourite Violet colour!
7. Yvette Young
Yvette Young is a multi instrumentalist, singer and a frontwoman of the math rock band “Covet”. Her talent combined with playing precision and unique style of tapping has gained her status as one of the top guitarists to watch in the progressive/math rock scene. Not only a touring musician, Yvette also gets involved in guitar clinics and runs a master course on guitar which attracts a huge following and more and more students are interested in learning her craft. Young taught herself guitar, playing by ear in various tunings, she rarely uses traditional shapes. And it’s partially thanks to that she found her own style.
Ibanez was her go-to guitar and righteously it was Ibanez who collaborated with this young guitarist in spec’ing her first ever signature model. The YY10 is packed with a set of sweetly singing Seymour Duncan Five Two pickups, Wilkinson® WV6-SB tremolo in the bridge and comes in Slime Green Sparkle.
The second release is an Ibanez YY20 in dazzling Orange Cream Sparkle which is a prog player’s best friend: set up to Yvette’s favourite FACGBE tuning and fitted with a pair of Seymour Duncan Alnico II Pro single coil pickups for maximum clarity. Hardtail Gotoh bridge and locking tuners have been added for extra tuning stability which is essential for technical playing.
8. Nikki Stringfield
Nikki hails from Texas and like many aspiring musicians she left her home town in search of a career in the City of Angels. A brave move for a young heavy metal musician, she believed in herself and quickly landed gigs in touring bands. Currently a guitarist for Femme Fatale and The Iron Maides bands (as was Nita Strauss), Stringfield is also a resident musician for Hard Rock Cafe in Hollywood and has 2 full studio albums under her belt! It comes as no surprise that her beloved Schecter brought her the recognition she deserves. With flair for energetic yet dramatic lead parts, a signature guitar was on the horizon. And so the Nikki Stringfield A-6 FR S was born. With an offset body, Floyd Rose bridge, 24 Xtra jumbo frets, 12”-16” compound radius fretboard, ultra thin “C” shaped neck, this is one shred-worthy machine. Extra horns for abalone 'Vine of Life' and mother of pearl 'Hell's Gate Skull' inlays. Available in Ruby and Maiden Mist finish.
9. Sophie Lloyd
Social media has taken the world by storm. And guitarists are all in for it. One particular Sophie Lloyd beating all records when it comes to the mass following she attracted via her Instagram and YouTube channel. Packed with professionally made videos of covers, originals and a whole lotta shred, Sophie’s skills are on fire! Thousands of followers, millions of views and likes are nice but what really sets her apart from other social media sensations is that on the back of her online success, Sophie scored a lead guitarist spot in Machine Gun Kelly touring band!
Talk about making dreams come true! It’s safe to say she revolutionised the term “bedroom guitarist” and showed everyone what it’s all about by utilising modern technology to her benefit. So much that she became endorsed by Ernie Ball and Kiesel guitars almost overnight. Although it looks like Sophie is so effortlessly having fun playing, don’t be fooled: she graduated from BIMM with First Class Honours BMus in Popular Music Performance and holds a status of a professional composer. What we see in a short video is a result of 2 decades of hard work dedication. And the crew at Kiesel guitars saw exactly that and teamed up with Sophie to make her first signature guitar. Limited Artist Edition A6H Aries in striking Purple Burst finish reflects the young maestro in every detail. Lithium pickups, glow-in-the-dark Luminlay SuperBlue dots, black limba body with burl maple top, this model has already sold out worldwide!
Final Thoughts
In an ideal world, the stress of the term female-fronted or female-guitarist wouldn’t need to exist. All the art and music would be seen as a form of expression, no matter what gender or background the performer represents. It may take a while before music will be music and art will be art. But right now we need a little push towards that world and with female musicians as fearless in tearing the old grounds as these, we are heading in the right direction.
