However, with the industry in the early stages of reopening, and uncertainty about Covid-19 variants – things are still unsure.
On Thursday, the Northern Ireland Executive announced the relaxation of rules around live music would be delayed to 5 July.
The changes have been delayed due to concerns about an increase in case numbers of the Delta variant.
An announcement allowing the broader return of live music had been expected to come from the meeting, with an indicative date of 21 June.
For Joe Dougan, a promoter with Shine, he said the decision was “a shame” but he could “understand the rationale”. “I was disappointed for all the musicians who were ready to go, who would have thought they were going to get out, now they can’t.
“I do think in general there is a fundamental misunderstanding how risky or otherwise these events are.”
He said getting clarity about how many people can attend events is crucial.
“We can’t work within any social distancing constraints, and that’s not just ourselves, that’s anyone running events of this capacity,” he said.
