Singing it with feeling

As the TV and newspapers have been saying, Belfast has had a really good time over the past few days. The MTV EMAs came to town and as I was at it, it would just be inappropriate not to comment. What a different side of Belfast it was from that which is typically shown, and how we typically see ourselves in this part of the world. Forget about all the glitz and glamour, just being part of something, connected to the rest of the world in a real way; that's what felt different about Sunday night. To watch the coverage of the event on Northern Irish TV you would think the rest of the world was tuning in just to see how we were coming along, and of course they mostly weren't, but it was good to stand in the spotlight and feel comfortable there.

And what about the TV coverage. UTV had a half hour programme the following evening covering the gig. My word it was a crap programme. There is no more effective way to take the glamour and shine away from something like the EMAs in Belfast than to have someone from the North talk about it. Seeing a UTV presenter trying to attempt to interview celebs on what is probably the only red carpet they have ever stood beside instead of reporting on missing chickens in Antrim or fuel-smuggling in South Armagh is as unconvincing as it is oddly reassuring. The news tonight was back to shedding light on a story about how some ladder down at the Titanic visitor centre was difficult to put in place or something. I swear the journalists looked relieved. I know I was.

I say I was at the EMAs, but I was actually at the City Hall concert. There was something good in the air as the crowd huddled into Royal Avenue in the cold night air between the traffic lights and watched Snow Patrol put in an amazing shift. A lot of people were just there pretty much for Jason Derulo (Jay-suun Deruulooo) but Snow Patrol (following Boyce Avenue) stole the show. There is something thoughtful, relaxed and just a wee bit sad about their music which is suited to Belfast's streets and in front of a great-looking City Hall which could be seen through the stage it helped to really create the feeling that everyone was just enjoying their free night together. I've never felt quite like that in Belfast City Centre before (especially not at night). I began their set hearing Gary Lightbody (one of the good guys) imploring the crowd to show the world what belfast could really be and thinking to myself that if I had a bag of chips I would smack the camera with it as it swooped past. Really show off our culture.

Alas I settled for giving it the fingers a few times ("Feck aff!"). But as the night wore on, and as we met strangers in the crowd and had a genuinely nice time from start to finish, I started to think more positively about it all. Maybe there is more hope for us yet here than I am inclined to give us credit for. As Gary lightbody introduced Take Back the City as a song he "wrote about Belfast" (I am certain I heard it was Glasgow, someone else said Liverpool - go figure), many of the lyrics did strike a chord:

Take back the city for yourself tonight
I'll take back the city for me

God knows you put your life into its hands
And it's both cradled you and crushed
But now it's time to make your own demands
It's a mess, it's a start
It's a flawed work of art
Your say, your call
Every crack, every wall
You can sing, 'til you drop
'Cause the fun just never stops
I love this city tonight

I was there with some foreign friends, happy that they got the chance to see the potential behind the shite. Good times Belfast.