Will there be music festivals in 2021? Firefly and XPoNential are on schedule to return.

Are music festivals coming back this year?

It seems that they are. On Monday, Delaware’s Firefly Music Festival, which is normally held in June but was canceled in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic, made a surprise announcement. This year’s fest will go on, at the later dates of Sept. 23-26.

And if all goes according to plan, that gathering at The Woodlands in Dover, Del., will come just one weekend after another of the Philadelphia-area’s signature music events: the XPoNential Music Festival, the three-day showcase in Camden presented by adult-alternative radio station WXPN-FM (88.5).

XPoNential is “absolutely on,” WXPN station manager Roger LaMay said on Tuesday of the fest that’s staged annually at Wiggins Park and the BB&T Pavilion on the Delaware River waterfront. “We’re proceeding on the assumption that we’re going to have a robust festival that will be as close to normal as the conditions at the time will allow.”

XPoNential has previously taken place in late July, but before COVID-19 caused its cancellation last year, the fest had already been moved to the fall to avoid blistering summer temperatures, LaMay says.

“I’m optimistic with what’s going on with vaccinations,” he said. “I’m glad we’re not scheduled for summer anymore. ... The safety aspects will be really important to us. And we know how badly the members of our community want to be at our festival in September. So it’ll be like a family reunion.”

No acts have been announced yet for this year’s Firefly or XPoNential.

Last year, Firefly, which has featured Paul McCartney and Kendrick Lamar in the past and drawn as many as 90,000 people, was slated to have its first-ever slate of all-women headliners, with Billie Eilish, Maggie Rodgers, and Halsey.

AEG Presents, which stages the festival, said information about bands, COVID-19 restrictions, and ticket sales would be forthcoming at fireflyfestival.com, which was updated with the new dates on Monday.

LaMay said that XPoNential is “actively booking” for the September fest, along with its partner Live Nation, and that he expects a combination of “core XPN acts and new bands.” The lineup will be announced in May at xpnfest.org, with guidelines and capacity limits yet to be determined.

With Firefly and XPoNential on the calendar in September, what does that mean for other staples of the outdoor concert season?

The Philadelphia Folk Festival is scheduled for its 60th iteration Aug. 19-22. A decision has not yet been made about whether it will be in person or go virtual as it did in 2020, a spokesperson said on Tuesday.

Made In America traditionally takes place on the Ben Franklin Parkway on Labor Day weekend. Last month, a spokesperson for Jay-Z’s company Roc Nation said, “Jay-Z and Roc Nation are making every effort to produce the Made In America festival ... As we continue to keep informed on all health safety measures, guidelines and mandates and work with local officials; we look forward to returning to the city we love.”

James Garrow of the Philadelphia Department of Public Health said it’s too soon to know what restrictions will look like on Labor Day or even the Fourth of July, when Philadelphia typically stages the finale of its annual Welcome America celebration.

“The city is excited to be able to hold events again as soon as possible, but needs to make sure that it is safe to do so,” Garrow said. “The Health Department is keeping a close eye on the trend in cases and hospitalizations and is regularly reviewing the city’s COVID restrictions and tailoring them to the current situation.” Live Nation, who coproduces the Made In America festival with Roc Nation, did not comment.

And as the COVID-19 vaccination rollout progresses, the concert industry is showing growing confidence that some kind of normalcy will return in the fall.

For the first time since the pandemic began in March of last year, Philly venues are announcing shows that aren’t just rescheduled dates from previous bookings. Earlier this month, Union Transfer listed a Dinosaur Jr. show on Nov. 18. This week, Johnny Brenda’s added a Courtney Marie Andrews show on Oct. 4. And next week, Ardmore Music Hall will announce a slate of shows for the fall.

Of course, given the uncertainty of the pandemic, that doesn’t mean that those indoor shows — or outdoor festivals scheduled for the fall — are guaranteed to happen.

“No one has been really good at predicting the future,” said WXPN’s LaMay. “And if things take a turn for the worse, obviously the safety of our community comes first. But based on the trend lines that we’re seeing, we’re optimistic.”