John Mayer teams up with CASIO G-SHOCK to release a signature watch
“It’s the perfect bridge between my double life as a musician and watch enthusiast.”
Images: Paras Griffin / Getty / G-SHOCK / Hodinkee
Guitarist John Mayer has teamed up with Hodinkee and CASIO G-SHOCK for the Ref. 6900, a digital watch inspired by the aesthetics of the 1980s Casiotone SK-5 sampling keyboard.
Mayer’s collaboration with CASIO for the watch was inspired by his extensive use of the SK-5 keyboard when he was a child – which had a distinctive grey colour scheme with some saturated highlights. This aesthetic has been combined with the form factor and look of the 6900, the third best-selling G-SHOCK watch globally – first launched in 1995.
Mayer himself said of the choice of inspiration: “Whenever someone asks me to collaborate on a design, I like to find my footing in a place of authenticity. I think the “why” is as important as the “what,” and when I thought back on my relationship to Casio products, their keyboards came to mind as much as the watches did. Then I remembered how important the Casiotone SK-5 was in my life, and it got exciting really fast. It’s the perfect bridge between my double life as a musician and watch-enthusiast.”
He also noted of the watch’s affordability: “I also love the price point. I’m not sure people would have expected a $180 watch with my name on it, but I think it’s really playful and inviting.”
The Ref. 6900 by John Mayer comes in a resin case that measures 53.2mm in diameter, 16.3mm thick, and holds a Japanese-made quartz movement. It sports a 24-hour clock, a 1/100th stopwatch, a 24-hour countdown timer, multi-functional alarm, flash alert, and EL backlight.
It’s available now in limited (but non-numbered) quantities from hodinkee.com, retailing at $180.
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