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U2 and Martin Garrix officially release soaring collab ‘Fireflies’: “There’s always a sense of adventure whenever we get together”
U2 and Dutch DJ-producer Martin Garrix have released ‘Fireflies’, a collaborative single first performed live during Garrix’s Tomorrowland set the previous week. The release reunites Garrix with Bono and The Edge, and marks a further crossover between U2’s rock sound and electronic music.
Garrix said the song was begun six summers ago and described finally debuting it with The Edge as electrifying and surreal. The track builds towards a soaring chorus, with Bono on vocals and The Edge’s distinctive guitar work, while following their 2021 Euro 2020 song ‘We Are The People’. It also arrives as U2 prepare their first album of newly written material since 2017’s ‘Songs Of Experience’.
In short
- U2 and Martin Garrix release long-developed single ‘Fireflies’.
- The track debuted live at Tomorrowland with The Edge.
- It follows previous collaborations and precedes U2’s new album.
Explained simply
U2 are one of the world's largest rock bands, formed in Dublin over forty years ago and known for their stadium-filling sound and cultural influence. Martin Garrix is a Dutch electronic music producer and DJ who rose to prominence in the mid-2010s and has become one of the most successful artists in dance music.
U2 have increasingly experimented with electronic production and dance influences in recent years, marking a shift from their traditional guitar-driven rock foundation. The pair previously collaborated on 'We Are The People' for Euro 2020 in 2021, establishing a working relationship between the Irish rock institution and the Dutch electronic artist.
This project is significant as U2 prepare to release their first album of entirely new material since 2017, with electronic and dance influences potentially playing a substantial role. The collaboration also exemplifies a broader convergence between rock and electronic music at the mainstream level, with established acts from each genre increasingly working together.
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