Frequent music festival attendance: festival fandom and career development

Abstract

Purpose: The purpose of the study is to compare features of career development and fandom in frequent festival attendance in the context of Finnish music festivals. Design/methodology/approach: The study uses a mixed methods research approach and employs two theoretical frameworks: theories of career development and fandom. Findings: In frequent festival attendance, both festival career development and festival fandom are most clearly present in motivation development and social dimensions. Practical implications: Strategically, frequent festivalgoers should be considered as crucial stakeholders, who might mobilize the co-creation of a sense of community or festival brand. Originality/value: Music-related fandom has been previously investigated in relation to artists and specific musical genres, but not so much in relation to music festivals in general. Career studies, on the other hand, concentrate heavily on sports events. There is a scarcity of research scrutinizing both career development and fandom in the festival context within the same study, and festival attendance as part of music tourism is an under-researched area.