Ronnie James Dio has been resurrected.
The iconic metal frontman, who died in May 2010 at the age of 67, was back on stage in hologram form last night during the 28th annual Pollstar Awards at The Novo in Los Angeles. As Blabbermouth relays, the Dio holgram fronted Dio Disciples, a band featuring Dio members Simon Wright (drums), Craig Goldy (guitar), and Scott Warren (keyboards). Former Judas Priest vocalist Tim “Ripper” Owens and bassist Bjorn Englen round out the group, with others joining the mix at various points.
The Dio hologram, which debuted last summer in Germany, is the creation of a company called Eyellusion, and the whole thing has the full support by the singer’s widow and manager, Wendy.
“We were thrilled to give this audience just a taste of the experience that we will start to tour globally later this year,” says Eyellusion CEO Jeff Pezzuti. “This ‘We Rock’ performance is now being retired and production is underway on a full show. We are pulling out all the stops to create a live experience that is unlike anything Ronnie’s fans have seen before.”