Fred Again.. & Skrillex make history at San Francisco’s Civic Center with massive pop-up rave

Fred Again.. and Skrillex have reunited in San Francisco to test new music for 25,000 attendees in front of City Hall.

What happens when two of the world’s biggest DJs come together for a pop-up rave in one of America’s most notorious cities? Magic. While Fred Again.. and Skrillex continue to amass in popularity, San Francisco has been relentlessly targeted by national media. So this past Saturday, Fred Again.. and Skrillex worked with the city’s government and local event production company Another Planet Entertainment to change that narrative.

The result? The duo, who have been working on a new album together, made history with a 3.5-hour set for 25,000 attendees in front of City Hall. The show’s tickets went on sale just days before the event and sold out instantly. From the get-go, it was clear this event was going to be monumental—not just for the producers, but for fans and the city too.

There was no telling who else would join them at the event, dubbed “Skrillex Again..” from a preview of official merchandise. However, Anderson .Paak ended up being the special guest of the evening, who performed his new track with Fred Again.., “places to be.” To kick things off, Skrillex jumped on the mic with a wholesome message: “As long as you came here for love today, we want the whole wide world to see what’s going on with the Bay Area.”

An event of this magnitude in front of City Hall did not seem possible in today’s climate, especially under the media’s microscope. The constant news stories of crime and big tech layoffs portray San Francisco in its downward spiral era. However, this media narrative is just an overly sensationalized, one-dimensional critique. In addition to its natural coastal beauty and quaint architecture, San Francisco is the West Coast’s ultimate party capital – and Fred Again.. and Skrillex proved this.

Throughout the event, the artists took turns flawlessly mixing tracks and sharing new music. The producers dropped their iconic songs like “Delilah (Pull Me Out of This),” “Baby Again..,” “Fine Day Anthem,” and “Push.” Skrillex even played “Where Are Ü Now,” his 2015 collaboration with Justin Bieber as Jack Ü with Diplo.

The crowd harmonized when the duo dropped the Taylor Swift “Love Story” remix popularized by Four Tet, their frequent collaborator. Fred shared his new edit with PARISI of “Vent” by Baby Keem ft. Kendrick Lamar. Other memorable song moments include “We Are Your Friends” by Justice vs. Simian and Benny Benassi’s “Cinema” over “Oui” by Jeremih. The duo also dropped remixes of “Body” by Megan Thee Stallion and “Lost” by Frank Ocean.

Fred Again.. and Skrillex dropped several other IDs throughout the night, with the duo closing out their set at exactly 10 pm. Just before this extravagant night ended, Skrillex played a sample from the news regarding the event. It was a cheeky nod to how they were shifting the media narrative away from chaos and toward hope. The night’s final track consisted of their unreleased collaboration with the vocals “See, I was dreaming,” which Skrillex sang along to.

The entire performance felt lucid, with Skrillex sharing that this performance made his dream come true. He described San Francisco as “his second home,” having lived here for 10 years, even name-dropping his elementary school. As a kid, he walked through the park often, so to play a major show there was certainly life-changing.

So did the Skrillex Again.. event bring the heart and soul of San Francisco’s electronic music scene back into action? Attendees will agree this well-organized event was a breath of fresh air. For true fans of the city’s underground, that energy never left. It can be found just about any day of the week as Justin Martin said in a famous sample from Dom Dolla’s “San Frandisco.”

Ultimately, the dynamic duo collaborated on an unforgettable, transformative performance that best represented the spirit of their sound, fans, and San Francisco. It’s no telling when their album will drop, but we’ll be reliving the memories of Skrillex Again.. until then. Hopefully, the rest of the world can now properly recognize just how San Francisco is reviving its underground roots.