Biography
Although she's best known as being the lead guitarist on Michael Jackson's ''This Is It'' tour, Orianthi had already been a huge success in the music industry. She started playing instruments at the age of three. By the age of 14 she started touring with bands in England and France, while also jamming with such rock n' roll icons as Carlos Santana, Eric Clapton, and Prince. Orianthi had already started writing her own songs when her debut album, "Violet Journey," was released in 2005. Orianthi wrote all of the songs on the album, and before long the music industry started to take notice. She signed a recording deal with Geffen Records in 2006, and was soon performing as Carrie Underwood's lead guitarist at the 51st Annual Grammy Awards. Orianthi's performance on the show led to her being chosen by Michael Jackson to be the lead guitarist for his upcoming This Is It concerts in London. Although the concerts were cancelled after Jackson's untimely death in June of 2009, Orianthi continued performing live. In 2010 she performed on the reality shows, "So You Think You Can Dance "and "Dancing with the Stars," while also appearing as a musical guest on "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno." In August of 2011, Orianthi became the newest guitarist in '70s-era rocker Alice Cooper's band.
