Jimi Hendrix Selected for Washington’s $1 Coin in 2029

The Jimi Hendrix commemorative $1 coin is scheduled for release in 2029, after Washington Governor Bob Ferguson selected the Seattle-born guitarist for the United States Mint’s American Innovation $1 Coin Program.

Hendrix will represent Washington. The Mint issues four new coins each year through the program, which celebrates inventors, innovators and groundbreaking achievements from all 50 states, Washington, D.C., and five U.S. territories. Its selections honor people and ideas across culture, science, technology and society.

Why Hendrix for the coin program?

Ferguson’s announcement traces Hendrix’s life from Seattle, where he was born in 1942, through Horace Mann Elementary School, Washington Junior High and Garfield High School. His first musical gig took place in his hometown. He later performed on stages around the world and helped alter the sound of rock music.

“Purple Haze,” “The Wind Cries Mary” and “Voodoo Child (Slight Return)” show his use of feedback (returning amplified sound), distortion (roughened or clipped guitar tone), blues and psychedelia (music associated with altered perception). Those recordings opened broader paths for the electric guitar. His influence reached generations of rock, funk, metal and alternative musicians.

Hendrix entered the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1992 with the Jimi Hendrix Experience. Rolling Stone named him the “greatest guitarist of all time” in its 2023 ranking. The two honors place his technique and influence inside the Mint’s national account of American ingenuity.

How did Washington make its selection?

Washington Treasurer Mike Pellicciotti coordinated a review process for Ferguson’s choice. His advisory committee unanimously approved five finalists for the governor’s consideration. Ferguson then chose Hendrix from that group.

The selection fixes the honoree and the 2029 release year, but it does not yet fix the coin’s visual design, which remains subject to federal review. The next phase includes design development and consultations with federal arts and coinage committees. The U.S. Secretary of the Treasury will select the final design.

Once the Treasury approves it, the Mint will place the finished coin in a national collection celebrating American ingenuity. That distinction matters because a federal program can honor a musician long before the government settles on how to depict him. A selection is not a finished design.

What does the honor mean for Seattle?

Janie L. Hendrix, President and CEO of Experience Hendrix, welcomed the choice as a celebration of her brother’s enduring creativity and tied it to the Pacific Northwest. She recalled that Jimi described himself as a “West Coast Seattle Boy.” She hoped the recognition would inspire children across the region to follow their own dreams.

The Ferguson announcement places Hendrix’s work within a broader claim: music has produced technological advances, creative breakthroughs and cultural movements. His career illustrates the program’s claim that one artist can transform an instrument through imagination and technique. The announcement says his music continues to reach new listeners, inspire guitarists and encourage musicians to explore sounds not yet invented.

The $1 coin is small enough to fit in a pocket. The program’s larger claim still depends on its visual choices. By 2029, the final design must hold up that musical argument without reducing Hendrix to a decorative logo. The process rests with the federal arts and coinage committees, and the final choice rests with the U.S. Secretary of the Treasury.