Rising guitarist Ruby J on why she loves her Epiphone acoustic
The British guitarist on why she loves a big-bodied acoustic and why her favourite Epiphone makes her feel important on stage.
Presented in association with Elixir Strings
View postRising guitarist and songwriter Ruby J has built a name for herself with support slots for everyone from Tony Hadley to The Lathums, and will kick things up to another gear by supporting British pop-rock institutions later this year. She’s also got more than 40,000 followers on Tiktok.
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The guitarist’s fleet-fingered approach has earned her endorsement deals with brands as diverse as Harmony and Elixir Strings, but when it comes to picking out her favourite guitar of the moment, she can’t help but reach for her Epiphone Inspired By Gibson J-200.
“We met in the summer last year at Gibson HQ,” Ruby tells us. “I was invited down by the lovely team there and and was looking for a new acoustic guitar. I played a few – I played a Hummingbird and some others, but then I picked up this beautiful guitar and fell in love. I haven’t left it since – I’m very loyal!”
It might have been love at first sight for Ruby and the J-200, but over the ensuing months the guitar has reminded her again and again why she made the right decision.
“It sounds beautiful and it’s so fun to play live,” she enthuses. “It makes me feel important on stage because it’s huge and I’m small! And because I’m quite a heavy-handed acoustic guitarist, and I like to play quite loud and heavy, the J-200 allows me to do that because it’s such a huge guitar – look at it, it’s massive! And it looks beautiful as well, which helps – it makes me look really cool on stage!”
When it comes to stringing the J-200 up, there’s only one choice for Ruby – her Elixir® Acoustic Phosphor Bronze Strings with NANOWEB® Coating, in a Custom Light gauge that suits her smaller hands.
“I always rely on Elixir, I don’t use any other strings, because these are the best!” she exclaims. “Especially for me and my style of playing. I also use their electric strings on my electric guitars.”
Ruby J has spent the summer playing festival stages across the UK, and in doing so has bonded with her J-200 more than ever, though she hasn’t quite got around to giving the guitar its own name yet…
“I haven’t even named it… should I name it?” she muses. “Is is it weird to name your guitar? I feel like many people do but I haven’t… maybe I will!”
Watch the full video above to find out more and hear Ruby putting her J-200 through its paces.
To find out more about Ruby J’s music, head to her Linktree for the latest updates and links to her social media, to find out more about Elixir Strings, visit elixirstrings.com.