While it was the worst terrorist atrocity ever to target a live music event, it was not the first violent incident.
In June 2016, US singer Christina Grimmie was shot dead by an obsessed and deranged fan as she signed autographs for fans at the Plaza Live in Orlando, Florida. The gunman, Kevin Loibl, 27, immediately shot himself.
But that incident got little publicity as it happened only hours before Omar Mateen — who swore allegiance to Daesh — gunned down 49 people at a gay club in the same city.
James Shotwell, who hosts the Inside Music Podcast, wrote: "There will no doubt be much discussion about security and live events in the days ahead. It is likely we will even see some changes made, especially at arena events.
"Be cautious of trusting anyone who promises this will never happen again. That kind of guarantee is not achievable in today's world. As with all things in life, people will ultimately need to rely on on — and turn to — one another to create spaces where we can feel safe once more."
Live Nation, which runs three O2 Academy venues in London, said on Wednesday, May 24, it had already "implemented heightened security procedures" and the management of Wembley Arena asked fans to arrive in extra time for beefed-up checks and bag searches.
Our hearts are with Manchester tonight. 🇬🇧 [ via @charliewalk ] pic.twitter.com/2d9knRXS6z
— Live Nation (@LiveNation) May 23, 2017
On Wednesday night around 5,000 people attended a vigil in the center of Manchester and several live music venues in the city went ahead with planned gigs the same night.
"While we have to pay attention to operational things, which make people safe and give them an environment that will make them happy, we're not going to stop what we're doing because of one wingnut," said Jay Taylor, who works at one of the venues, Night And Day.
Tonight’s @matt_andersen show will be going ahead. Doors 8pm, @dicefm, support from @CNTLH pic.twitter.com/jaqXz36diT
— Night & Day Cafe (@nightanddaycafe) May 24, 2017
Salman Abedi, the 22-year-old suicide bomber who killed 22 people on Monday night (May 22), reportedly detonated his device outside the arena, despite initial reports the explosion took place in the foyer.
"It shows a very strategic assessment had been done by the perpetrator or perpetrators," Sheelagh Brady, security analyst and former officer with the Irish police, told Sputnik.
"They identified an inherent vulnerability in how concerts are managed. When you go in there is a lot of security, people are searched and there are a lot of cordons in place but when you leave there is very little security in place and it allows the perpetrators to get very close to the event and then detonate," she told Sputnik.
Five of the victims have now been identified — Saffie-Rose Roussos, eight, Olivia Campbell, 15, John Atkinson, 28, Georgina Callander, 18, Kelly Brewster, 32, and Martyn Hett, 29.
Questions have been asked of the security at the Manchester Arena.
Journalist Ryan Gallagher tweeted, posting a link to Anna W. who wrote on TripAdvisor almost a month ago:
Notably only a few weeks ago someone who attended a Manchester Arena concert posted on TripAdvisor ominously questioning the lax security: pic.twitter.com/7VUCRBCFuH
— Ryan Gallagher (@rj_gallagher) May 23, 2017
ShowSec, who provided security at the Manchester Arena, have not yet responded to questions from Sputnik about issues surrounding Monday's incident.
Grande has flown back to the US, having canceled several concerts in Europe. After the attack she tweeted:
broken.
— Ariana Grande (@ArianaGrande) May 23, 2017
from the bottom of my heart, i am so so sorry. i don't have words.
