Aristotle once said “the whole is greater than the sum of its parts” and nothing could be more true for the super group behind Derek Vincent Smith, better known as Pretty Lights. However musically talented as Derek may be, his soulful sound may have never seduced the eardrums of the masses without the unfaltering support of his handpicked team of production gurus. From his 2006 debut “Taking Up Your Precious Time” to his most recent music venture, “A Color Map Of The Sun”, this team has supported Derek’s evolution into the artist he is today and helped push his sound worldwide.

Tweet this: Happy @PrettyLights Appreciation Day – #ThanksPL via @raverrafting & #PLF

Phil Salvaggio – Production Manager/ Audio Engineer

Well, I remember our first tour bus, then our second. Then we had a semi, now we have 2 busses, and 3 semi trucks. And we headline all the big crunchy festivals… Wakarusa, Summercamp, All Good… etc..  I think it was All Good last year (2011) there were 30,000 people there rocking the fuck out. And we were playing after bands I used to go see all the time… moe… Primus… And we put on a pretty mind blowing production.

Greg Ellis (better known as LaserShark) – Lighting Director

A huge part of the Pretty Lights stage appeal is his larger-than-life light show that seamlessly integrates with the music he plays. The combination of music and visuals work to create a live music experience that is not simply entertaining but also emotive and engaging.

Greg Ellis, also known as LaserShark, was melting faces with his incredible light shows in Conneticut when he first heard of Pretty Lights from his friend Phil Salvaggio. Phil admonished Greg to come to Colorado in hopes of working with an artist who could really utiltize their light and sound talents to the fullest potential.

Greg has since been managing the mind blowing laser show that accompanies every Pretty Lights show but it has certainly evolved since they first joined forces. The video portion of the show was once produced by a company out of Chicago called Radio Edit AV but the light show has always been completely dynamic.

For the lights, LaserShark utilitzes a system in which Pretty Lights has complete control by cuing certain effects from his ableton set up. This allows for the light show to change and flow perfectly with the music he chooses to play. Considering most of the shows he performs at are live sets where Derek is required to read the crowd in order to create a unique experience, this is an incredible advantage. Depending on the crowd, he could perform any number of sounds ranging from the power tracks and drum and bass we heard at Ultra to the set full of classics we heard at Counterpoint.

As for future shows, Pretty Lights said in an interview with Red Bull after this year’s Coachella,

…we’ve definitely stepped it up and made it more beautiful and eye-popping than ever, but back then when it started, having video made you stand out. It’s come full circle and now not having video makes you stand out. I basically designed a new show with no video but using conventional lights in ways that have never been used before. It’s going to be a cool surprise but it’s very unique and new and old at the same time – sort of like my music.

It will be interesting to see how the live instrumentation sound combined with the electronic element works together with the visual experience in his upcoming tour dates.

Krystle Blackburn – Creative Director/ PR/ Social Media Manager/ Photographer

They say behind every great man there is a great woman and Krystle Blackburn is an amazing woman who has been there to support Derek in every possible way she can.

After graduating from Michigan State and beginning her pursuit of a journalist career, she was famed for the articles she would write about the up and coming artist in The Real Detroit Weekly until finally she was able to join the team full time at the start of 2011.

Now she has her hands in every aspect of the business from managing the Pretty Lights social media networks to working with the press directly and she’s also known for capturing incredible photography and videography of his live sets to share her experiences with the world.

Her most recent contribution to Pretty Lights Music was spending the past 2 and a half years filming the making of Derek’s new album and conceptualizing the documentary that would follow. VICE offered to use their editing expertise to help with the production of the piece after Krystle finished the filming process and she worked directly with them so that Pretty Lights could maintain control over the creative process. The result is an insightful documentary film of the entire process that deeply explores the ideas behind his latest work and the effort that went into those ideas coming to fruition.

Directly from Krystle’s twitter account:

Being Derek Smith’s right hand is a huge undertaking. I certainly hope she finally gets to rest. This woman really deserves it.

Randy Reed: Red Light Management – General Manager

Red Light Management was founded by Coran Capshaw, who after extensive touring with the Grateful Dead earned an unparalleled understanding of the music industry. With that knowledge he built a talent agency that was open to employing new technologies to better manage the careers of artists of all genres.

The company is not particularly known for working with electronic artists but for a sound as ecclectic as Pretty Lights’, they are the perfect match. With a talent arsenal that includes Dave Matthews Band, Phish, Alicia Keys and Faith Hill their expertise knows no genre limitations. Recently, they have moved more into EDM by adopting Tiesto himself to their roster of clientele.

Without a record label to answer to for album sales, Pretty Lights was free to manage his career in any way he so chose. Red Light Management saw this as an opportunity to build an exponential fan base by providing full access to his music for free. An idea that would sound crazy to most artists looking to make a career out of music, was exactly what Pretty Lights needed to get his sound into the homes of millions.

He produced a Bit Torrent download package of his 3 most popular albums and the downloads reached #1 on Pirate Bay’s top 100 in a matter of months. Reaching over 4 million downloads in the first 2 months after the release, the Pretty Lights website gained a 700% traffic increase and his sound was officially globalized. His manager Randy Reed responded to this with:

Here we are celebrating hitting #1 on Pirate Bay, while major labels would be kicking, cursing, and sending take-down notices.

Their goal of pushing Pretty Lights Music to the masses was accomplished but then most would ask, “How does he make money if he gives away all his music for free?” and the answer to this is by diversifying his revenue streams. Now that he has the full undivided attention of the masses, he is selling out venues all over the world, releasing merchandise that consumers are devouring and receiving endorsements from huge brands begging to work with an artist who has an almost limitless range of influence.

The fans are happy because we are blessed with beautiful music for free. The artist is happy because his fans are willing to travel great distances and pay almost any price to hear his amazing music live. This business model has now built an unbreakable bond between Pretty Lights Music and the Pretty Lights family. An endless cycle of appreciation for one another.

More Pretty Lights:

• Pretty Lights Produces “All These Lights” by The Grouch & Eligh (Music Video)
• Pretty Lights – A Color Map of the Sun (Full Album Review)
• 21 Rare Pretty Lights Tracks

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