Joe Lee’s Bar on Church Street, Tullamore – in conjunction with the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media – has announced a new series of intimate outdoor events, Rising '21, featuring an exciting selection of local and national talent. Taking place from August 5–7, there will two separate concerts each day, with exact times to be confirmed closer to the event.

Across the three days of Rising '21, six gigs of different genres are set to take place – kicking off with a traditional concert on the Thursday afternoon, with headliner Damien Mullane. Sean O’Meara and Conor Broderick will accompany Damien, and support on the day will come from some of Offaly’s most talented traditional musicians.

The Thursday night will feature Simon Casey, Alex Roe and Kathy Durkin, who will be joined by an impressive selection of musicians.

Both of Thursday's shows will feature a performance by local comedian Keith Fox.

On the Friday afternoon, two local acts Gavin Ghee and Dubh Lee are set to perform, with Jerry Fish headlining. The former frontman of An Emotional Fish is guaranteed to be a highlight of the festival – with tickets for this show expected to move fast.

Friday night will feature Choice Music Prize-nominated producer Daithí – who has earned a reputation as one of the country's most beloved acts. Local DJs House of 76 will also perform on the night, as well as Cork's streaming sensations 49th and Main. Birr man Edwin Sammon, famed for his role in Bridget & Eamon, will perform at both shows on Friday.

Saturday afternoon, meanwhile, is for the rockers – with Gorilla Radio kicking off the show, and local band Blind Dog performing their acclaimed brand of blues rock. Combining elements of folk, hard rock and blues rock, Crow Black Chicken will also be making their fourth appearance at Joe Lee's. David Mallaghan will provide some spoken word and comedy throughout the afternoon.

To cap off the festival, the ultimate party band Electric Dreams will be supplying one of the best live '80s sets in the country on the Saturday night. Alongside Electric Dreams, local performers Rí Rá (Scary Éire), Cormac Lally (spoken word) and The Toxic Twins will also be bringing their own unique flavours to the festival.

The glue set to hold all of this together is another local man, Hot Press's Pat Carty – who will serve as the festival's MC over the few days, while also having plenty of banter with the acts.

Tickets go on sale this Friday, July 23, at noon, from leesbar.ie. Proceeds from sales will go to the Friends of Tullamore General Hospital and We Are The Support Act.

With all Covid-19 safety protocols being adhered to, including social distancing between groups of gig-goers, tickets for Rising '21 will be sold in pods of two, three, four or six, with allocated seating and a maximum capacity of 50 people per show. Tickets start at €50 plus booking fee for a pod of two.

Temperature checks, contact tracing, table service and mask wearing will all be mandatory.

Full bar service will be available with table service, or by using Joe Lee's online ordering app, which can be scanned from the QR code on each table.

For more information, see leesbar.ie