Malina Moye Debuts Special-Edition Fender Guitars – Billboard
Singer-songwriter-guitarist Malina Moye has released a limited-edition guitar collection featuring a hand-drawn image of her created by world-renowned artist Philippe Druillet.
Moye’s last album, 2018’s Bad As I Wanna Be, spent two weeks at No. 1 on Billboard’s Blues chart. It featured the inspirational single “Enough,” which sparked the 2019 social media campaign #IAmEnough. The empowerment campaign was supported by celebrities such as gospel singer Yolanda Adams and Boyz II Men’s Shawn Stockton.
With a resumé that includes projects for George Lucas and Jimi Hendrix, Druillet is best known for his prize-winning comic book series Salammbô. He is also the creator of the popular children’s television series Xcalibur on Canal+.
“I really respect Philippe,” Moye says of the pair’s collaboration. “He’s done so many incredible things in the world and for his country [France].”
Druillet’s team first approached Moye about collaborating in 2020 after witnessing a performance during her international tour. The new guitar collection’s illustration is inspired by an image of Moye taken by Mary Grace McKernan during a 2016 performance at the Starlight Bowl in Burbank, Calif.
The Moye-Druillet guitars are Fender Stratocasters that are also playable. The guitar specs include 22 jumbo frets, a modern C neck, a five-way switch, three standard pickups and a tremolo system. All 12 guitars, numbered and available in left-handed and right-handed versions, come in polar white. Also included is a custom case along with a certificate of authenticity and autographed photos signed by both of the dynamic creatives.
Additional guitars — equipped with Moye’s own line of signature strings and autographed by the lefty guitarist as well — are also being sold at MalinaMoye.com. When Moye teamed with Dean Markley Strings in 2021, she became the first Black woman to launch her own signature set of guitar strings. Moye first made herstory in 2010. When the Minneapolis native played the national anthem at the Minnesota Vikings/Dallas Cowboys game that year, she became the first African American female to play the national anthem on electric guitar at a major sporting event.
“The world has shifted,” says Moye. “You can find every type of guitar player now online and a majority of them are women,” she says. “What I can’t wait to see is more corporations seeing that and wanting to celebrate that through partnerships with women and people of color.”
A future tour and a TV role related to her rock and soul roots are on the way. But for now, Moye is coy about details. She does reveal that her new album, Dirty, will drop in March 2023. She also promises that audiences will “definitely, definitely” get to watch her rock one of the guitars from her titular collection during a future performance. And that may happen when she plays the national anthem again on December 18 during the Vikings vs. Colts game at the U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis.
“It’s important to understand your power and your worth,” she insists. “I’ve always wanted to be iconic, legendary, rare and — no matter what — be badass and make a statement. And that’s what this guitar collection does. This is something that you can play or it could be a great art piece.”
The Moye-Druillet guitar collection is exclusively sold at only three galleries in Paris: Guitar-Custom-Art.com, The New Opera and the Christian Collin Gallery. It’s also available at Malinamoye.com. Buyers can enjoy the customized experience for 3,600 euros (about the same in American dollars). Also an impassioned philanthropist, Moye notes that all proceeds from guitars purchased through her website will benefit her Drive Hope Foundation, which supports inner-city youth.
