When St Vincent collaborated with Ernie Ball Music Man on her signature guitar in 2016, the multifaceted, multi-Grammy-winning artist sought to fix what she felt was a fundamental flaw in the traditional electric guitar design.
It’s a quirk that, nearly a decade on, remains unique to the guitar. During her recent appearance on the Music Makes Us podcast, Olivia Rodrigo, who uses her customized version of the instrument to perform the song “Obsessed” — which she co-wrote with St. Vincent — says it’s this exact reason she loves the guitar.
“I read an interview about it, and she made a guitar that's specifically designed for women,” she explains. “She plays her guitar really high up, and it's cut so that you can have boobs and play guitar, which is so awesome.”
Talking to Guitar Center about the instrument’s angular hourglass-like shape at the time of its initial release, St. Vincent said she was aiming for an instrument design that was satisfied a mix of opposites.
“From a design perspective, I really like things that straddle that balance between retro and futuristic,” she said, “but I also like to think it's a gender inclusive model.”
The end result is satisfying to Rodrigo. “It's such a fucking cool-looking guitar,” she says.
St. Vincent's introduction to Music Man guitars came from playing its Albert Lee signature model, and so the neck of the guitar is lifted directly from tha. But it's the body shape, and St. Vincent’s broader desire to cater to the female playing community, that makes it stand out
Rodrigo’s also reflected on honoring the White Stripes at their Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction last month.
“I am the biggest White Stripes fan ever,” she says. “It was my favorite band growing up. I feel like most girls were super fanatic about One Direction. I was fanatic about One Direction, too, but the White Stripes were also my One Direction.”
At the ceremony, Rodrigo donned a Martin acoustic guitar to play a tender version of "We're Going to Be Friends" with Canadian singer-songwriter Fiest.
“It was such a surreal honor to get to sing one of their songs while honoring them into the Rock Hall,” she says. “[It was] very daunting to sing one of your favorite songs in front of the person who wrote that song. It's pretty scary, but I love Jack White.”
Rodrigo was raised on rock music, and her guitar-driven music is helping re-establish the instrument in modern pop music. Alongside fellow songstress Chappell Roan, she’s also helping bring guitar solos back into the mainstream.
“There's something so special about rock music made by women,” she says. “There's a different emotional quality to it. The pain, rage and vulnerability that a woman can express in a rock song are in an entirely different category. Growing up, I was so inspired by that.”
Meanwhile, one of St. Vincent's foremost influences is a relative.
“Tuck Andress is my uncle, and his influence on me is immense,” she told Guitar Player in 2022. “Tuck’s a total genius, and he can make an instrument sound like 10 people playing.
“The level of skill and discipline it took for him to become a one-man guitar symphony is staggering. I’ve never seen anybody play like he can play. He’s the eighth wonder of the world.”
