Fender made headlines yesterday after announcing a signature model for one of the most talked-about musicians in the world, the Billie Eilish signature ukulele.
In the wake of the news, fans have noted it wasn’t the first Fender model to feature Eilish’s ‘blohsh’ symbol – that accolade would actually go to a Thinline Telecaster played by her brother and chief collaborator, Finneas O'Connell (aka FINNEAS) on an NPR Tiny Desk Concert uploaded on August 26.
Besides the ‘blohsh’ symbols, the guitar features a black-painted Tele headstock (just like the uke), gray pearloid scratchplate, and what appear to be Fender noiseless single coils (note the ’lil Fender logo on the bridge pickup).
As for whether we’ll see Eilish herself brandishing the Tele, we’ll have to wait and see. But if the ukulele is a success, we wouldn’t rule out seeing this model hitting the shelves in the next year or so.
Fender’s collaboration with Eilish already extends deeper than the uke, with the addition of six Eilish songs to its Fender Play learning platform earlier this year.
We’ll keep you posted on any further developments, but for now, enjoy the Tele’s sweet, sweet tones in this stripped-back performance…
“After having been involved with Chapman for some time I realized we had a shared vision”: Chapman Guitars brings major industry player onboard as part of company restructure – and teases first-ever amp
“You might want to play on the cleaner side of the tracks, but try cranking it up a little – it damn-near takes off”: Why Gibson’s B.B. King ‘Rumble in the Jungle’ 1974 ES-355 is a technical knockout
