So how did the MTV Awards get their Belfast dues and how significant will this be for the city? It's an issue for discussion on the fine morning of March 2 as the sunshine licks over the Lagan and the glass panels of the Waterfront catch an unseasonal sparkle.
There are speeches from the Minister and the Lord Mayor. Various MTV execs are explaining the value of the European Music Awards and remembering the big moments of previous years. Meanwhile the local media are getting curious with the guests, listening to live music from skiffle-pop combo 1930s and thinking about just how they will get their extended families on the guestlist for The Odyssey, November 6.
I'm remembering another time, when Belfast was rooting for European City Of Culture. The intention in 2002 was earnest enough, but the arts infrastructure was infantile and the creatives were frequently hostile to the politicians, who were piqued and impatient in return. It didn't feel true, no matter how you wanted it to work.
That's basically the same story we hear from Richard Godfrey, mainstay of the EMAs for 16 years. He talks about visiting Belfast ten years ago, and not being won over. Five years later, he was still not convinced, but when he witnessed the Mark Ronson show last year he reckoned that the city was finally on.
And that's a view that many would share. At The Waterfront launch, the City Council, The Tourist Board, the political parties and the media are all supportive. It's a sweet accord. Belfast has sustained this welcoming noise over a series of MTV visits and familiarisation trips. Even a bomb scare on the Antrim Road during their last journey didn't spook the deal, although a concerned party did ensure that their hotel TVs were turned off that night and the dreary news was minimised.
Essentially, the burghers of Belfast have relaxed a great deal. Rather then pinching the penny, they're thinking long term. The persuader is Cultural Tourism. The accepted line is that music, visual arts, literature and the rest can sustain an attractive mood, bringing in the tourists, filling hotel rooms and lifting perceptions and opportunities. You can read the stats. Evidently people have done so.
Meantime, we're looking to the return of Belfast Music Week, a sustained primer for the MTV event that will allow the local players to put out their ideas, engage with their audiences and make the city even more relevant. Good people, we're gonna roll with it.
© 2011