The group may struggle to break even once this weekend's two-day gala is over, but they're the first in NSW to get a festival of its size across the line since COVID-19 and that's all that matters.

"Every step of the way we've been told by everybody 'this isn't going to go ahead', it's been met with constant negativity," Ben Tillman, co-founder of Yours and Owls, told the Mercury.

"If we were thinking financially, or thinking in hindsight or coldly, it isn't the smartest decision but you know there's a moral and an emotional thing that goes along with it which is why we have decided to push ahead."

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Border closures between states and abroad forced constraints on the availability of music artists; constantly changing restrictions meant costly additions to infrastructure to ensure COVID-safety; along with lengthy planning and approval processes diminshing the amount of time to organise an event for 14,000 punters.

The final green light from all stakeholders to allow the revised event at Dalton Park in Fairy Meadow to go ahead, was a mere week-and-a-half prior to the first band getting on stage.

"We've told ourselves 'we're going to be fine, we're going to be fine in the end', but ultimately you dont know that," Mr Tillman said.

"This means so much to so many people - everyone working here, all the artists playing ... If we get this rolling and then it makes it easier for everything following us."

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Byron Bay's Bluesfest came close to being the state's first major festival since the pandemic began, but a single case of COVID-19 in that region's community forced it to be shut down the day before - the second year in a row for the Easter event.

Yours and Owls was originally scheduled for the October long weekend in 2020, but was postponed until January and then again until April.

The volatility of restrictions to outdoor gatherings and the enforcement of seated events at a limited capacity had organisers scrounging for ideas as to how they'd pull it off.

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The final setup turned out to be vastly different from previous years - to the dismay of some punters noted on social media - but it is a step towards getting the industry back on track, according to Mr Tillman.

"Our industry has been decimated over the last [year]," he said. "Throughout the process we've realised there's a lot of people counting on us to have this come back."

The event was moved from Stuart Park at North Wollongong to Dalton Park; patrons would be seated in four individual zones - each with separate bars, toilets, and food stalls; music fans would be seated in rows of plastic chairs each individually Zippy Tied together; while a dual stage setup in the middle of the ground would see bands rotating on a revolving platform.

"That's part of the extra million dollars in costs ... on top of the budget we set before we went on sale and announced [festival dates, the lineup et cetera]," Mr Tillman said.

"We've just constantly played that game of having to run a gauntlet and hope that the COVID situation remains the same."

Up until April 16, Australia had recorded 29,294 confirmed cases of COVID-19, including 910 deaths. NSW last recorded a confirmed case of locally transmitted COVID-19 in March (which sparked the Byron Bay scare).

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While after state government deliberations, March 29 became the first time in over a year dancing was no longer outlawed. Singing also made a welcome return.

The Yours and Owls name first appeared over a decade ago on the side of a tiny cafe at the corner of Kembla and Crown Streets in Wollongong, a venture by three mates - Balunn Jones, Adam Smith and Mr Tillman.

Originally conceived as a coffee shop, then a gallery and a hugely popular music venue, the moniker shifted from a physical space to the name for a series of projects including pop-up gigs and a record label.

The first festival of its kind was born in 2014 with just 2000 tickets and a collection of 10 local and national bands at Stuart Park, for what was titled "Yours and Owls 4^th Birthday Party". Safia, Dune Rats and Hockey Dad were on that lineup with the latter now also part of this weekend's smorgasbord of talent.

The festival itself has received two nominations for Best Live Music Festival at the National Live Music Awards, and took out the honour of NSW Live Event of the Year in 2019.

The founders of Yours and Owls have also been heavily involved with the revitalisation of Wollongong's night life and music scene.

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When the original cafe turned into a small bar there were less than a handful in the CBD. In 2021 there are dozens of small bars spread throughout the city and many more popping up in the suburbs.

But after nearly a year of entertainment being scarce and a fraction of the usual incoming dripping through to the group, how and when would the next festival installment look like?

"I don't know," Mr Tillman simply said. "We just want to get this one done and see where we sit financially."

Recently the group had applied for Federal Government assistance through the Restart Investment to Sustain and Expand (RISE) Fund which is to support festivals, concerts, tours, productions and events but were rejected "on a technicality".

Mr Tillman said in past years they've just "scraped around to try and find money" to produce their event and never relied on government grants - but that may change.

"We had to fight all these battles ... to get things happening and that's probably at our detriment," he said. "But it's something to be proud of, and at least you've lived your life knowing that you've given it a crack and done things as best you can."

Tickets are still available for the Yours and Owls Festival, April 17 and 18, Dalton Park in Fairy Meadow. www.moshtix.com.au