Music festivals research in the hospitality and tourism industry: a bibliometric analysis

Purpose Music festivals are categorized as event management in the hospitality and tourism (H&T) industry. Additionally, music festivals or events are a continuous phenomenon in the context of the hospitality and tourism industry. In this study, a bibliometric approach was proposed to examine research that addresses both the H&T industry and music festivals. Design/methodology/approach A total of 462 studies covering the years 1981–2024 were retrieved from the Scopus database. The study analyzed keywords, institutions, sources, countries, and titles. During the analysis phase, descriptive analysis, clustering, thematic mapping, and relationship networks were employed using Bibliometrix and VOSviewer analysis programs. Findings As a result of the analysis, the most frequently used keywords were “tourism” and “festival,” with the most prolific author being Kruger M., the most productive country being the United States of America, and the leading journal being Event Management. Seven different clusters emerged from the networking of keywords. In the thematic map, the motor themes were music festivals, experience, social media, and co-creation. The basic themes were festival, music, tourism, event management, market segmentation, and music tourism. The emerging or declining themes were culture, music events, and COVID-19. Finally, the niche theme was entrepreneurship. Research limitations/implications It’s noted that this research solely utilized the Scopus database and publications such as chemistry and mathematics, were excluded. The findings were limited to bibliometric analysis, and future studies could include content and thematic evaluations. Social implications The research is useful in understanding how music festivals socially direct tourists and their future perspectives. On the other hand, determining the global status of scientific publications regarding music festivals with high social and economic impact is important for proper planning and sustainability of such events. Originality/value Music festivals are an important type of event in terms of mobility in the H&T industry. In this respect, it is in a state of change and development over the years. This research examined publications about music festivals in the H&T industry from the past to the present with a bibliometric approach. In this way, the development of publications produced on the relevant subject was revealed.