Malaysia’s live entertainment industry is set for a return today after a year of lockdown blues.
Some of them said they were unsure if they could host live music, claiming the new guidance was vague in its reference to commercial areas where resto-bars are located. Syed Yusof had said the safety measures imposed on other crowd sectors could be similarly applied to live performance venues so that they could reopen.
Music associations had lobbied for a partial opening of entertainment outlets initially to put musicians back to work as the pandemic ravaged live business and the music world locked its doors. “It has been a terrible time for musicians and business owners with plenty of tears but there is some relief now,” Jansen said.Freddie Fernandez, president of the Malaysian Artistes’ Association , in thanking the government for reviving the health of the live music sector, said: “It’s been a long road and there may be further bumps along the way, but for now we are just excited to get going.