Rezz Debuts Her Portal in San Francisco

By Deni | March 8, 2025

This weekend I attended one of, if not the best show of my life. I’ve attended many local shows, away festivals, and some big events. But Rezz’s Portal debut at the Cow Palace blew me away like no other.

Rezz was my first EDM show when I started raving. I’ve seen her perform multiple times since and every set showcased her signature hypnotic, playhouse vibes. When I saw the teasers for Portal, I was intrigued but had no idea what to expect. To be honest, I didn’t get how it was different from her previous productions. But dang was I wrong!

The night kicked off with Ninajirachi, followed by Detox Unit. I arrived when the first set started and got my floor access wristband as soon as I got in. If you’ve been to the Cow Palace before, you know the drill. To manage the big crowd an arena of this size gathers, the venue enforces a wristband rule. A free paper wristband is required and checked by security when entering the floor. As the wristbands are first come, first served, attendees who arrive later enjoy the show from the stands surrounding the floor.

The next stop was merch. The merch line was crazy long, longer than I’ve seen at some festivals. I was surprised to see a line so huge, especially since Rezz held a pop-up at Public Works hours before this event. The pop-up had exclusive Portal merch, an art gallery, and giveaways; as well as DJ sets where Rezz also made a brief appearance. Most of my friends got their merch at the pop-up, or decided to order it online once they saw the line at the Cow Palace.

Before we headed to the floor to settle in our spot for the rest of the night, we came across these giant posters the venue prepared for fans to “Leave a Note for REZZ”, which were delivered to her dressing room once filled out. I’ve never seen this at the Cow Palace, but it was a beautiful addition to the night.

Once the exploration was over, we found a spot in the center of the crowd next to the lighting booth and we stayed there for the rest of the night. Peekaboo was the last act before Rezz opened her long-awaited Portal set. This was the first time I’ve seen Peekaboo perform and I really enjoyed his set. I was impressed with his visuals and thought it really complimented his production.

Rezz opened her set with “Black Ice”, her recent collab with Subtronics. The music began, her goggles began glowing and the massive Portal screen lit up. She made a grand entrance with some of the highest pyro I’ve seen at Cow Palace. Surrounded with lights and lasers on all sides, the crowd roared with every drop. She played some classics, as well some very new tracks. One of the most anticipated songs was her new collab “entropy” with Anyma ft. Fknsyd. Leading up to the first Portal show in San Francisco, Anyma debuted this song at the Las Vegas Sphere. The new visuals made waves among the EDM community and created lucrative noise among fans. When Rezz introduced this new track, the entire crowd lit up with anticipation.

The entire set was stunning. The sheer size of the Portal screen was intently overwhelming, I couldn’t take my eyes off of it. Every new visual was different from the last, but they all maintained the carefully curated hypnotic storytelling of this new chapter. This was a groundbreaking show for many reasons. It was an independent, sold out, massive arena production by a young, female artist. Rezz has previously hosted shows dominated by female artists, like her all-female lineup at Red Rocks in 2024. Portal will be remembered as one the biggest productions by a woman in the EDM space and I am honored to have witnessed it first hand.

Following the grand opening of her debut show, Rezz was very vocal on social media. The day after, she shared some words expressing that this is only the beginning of the project she has envisioned for a long time; “I’ve never felt more fulfilled…This project is simply my entire lifetime of inspiration put into one place”.

Fans who couldn’t attent this debut show in the Bay Area started asking for Portal at upcoming festivals or at Rezz’s 3rd headlining show at Red Rocks this Octiber. Rezz responded that Portal will be exclusive to her own arena events because the screen is simply too big to accommodate other venues or festival.
Following Anyma’s debut of their new collab “entropy” at the Las Vegas Sphere, there was already buzz about Rezz playing at the coveted grand venue. Adding fuel to the flames, the Sphere replied to clips from Portal hinting at a very possible collaboration in the future. Having seen exactly what Rezz has in store for the hottest venue of the year, I would give my arm and both legs to attend Portal at the Las Vegas Sphere.