After five years of relative silence, DJ and producer Pretty Lights, also known as Derek Vincent Smith, has announced his return. The “Finally Moving” creator hasn’t seen a stage since performing two-sold out shows on March 10 and 11 at Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Morrison, Colo., and hasn’t released any new music since his self-produced single “Rainbows & Waterfalls” in 2017, that is, until today.
🌀❤️🚀 pic.twitter.com/NKnoRNXt6x
— PL (@PrettyLights) April 4, 2023
In a teaser trailer revealing his return to live music, he shared a clip of new music in which he sings autotuned, drenched and direct lyrics addressing his absence and feelings since going radio silent: “I’ll fly a starship across the universe divide/ And when I reach other side/ I’ll find a place to rest my spirit if I can/ Perhaps may become a pretty light again/ Or I may be a simple drop of rain/ But I will remain, and I’ll be back again.” Following the lyrics, the trailer hammers out locations where he’ll be performing, including Denver, Lake Dillion, Colo., Atlanta, Philadelphia, Brooklyn, N.Y., Chicago, The Caverns in Pelham, Tenn., San Fransico and New Orleans.
The video also introduced new visions for his tour, including PL LIVE in Dub, which was accompanied in the video by dub-heavy sonic waves and The Fantastic Pretty Lights, which seems to be a collaborative effort. A poster later shared on Twitter outlined featured guests, including Michael Menert, Borahm Lee, Alvin Ford Jr., Chris Karns, Lazershark, Anti-Alias and Volt Peeking.
“Can’t wait to share everything that’s coming. And fam, seriously, thank you so much for your endless love and support,” Pretty Lights added on social media. “Thank you for all the positive energy while I took time to focus mine. It’s a new dawn and I can’t wait to see you all again shining bright. lfggggggg”.