Dr Lucy Bennett

(she/her)

BA (Cardiff), MA (Cardiff), PhD (Cardiff)

Publication

• Date
• Type

Research

• Live Music Fandom and Audiences: Within this research strand I have been exploring:  a) the use of technology, social media and digital media during live concerts by fans, b) camping culture by fans outside the concerts, and the meaning and impact this can have, c) live concert etiquette by fans - with the rise of audience members throwing objects at musicians, and d) the connections between musicians and fans at live concerts. I have been a regular commentator in the media about these topics, being interviewed and my comments featuring in key media companies such as NBC News, BBC Radio 1 Newsbeat, BBC Jersey, BBC News Worldwide, The Guardian, and many more internationally. 

• Popular Music: Another key area of my research is popular music and how it intersects with media and culture. I teach a big third year module on this topic and supervise BA, MA, and PhD students in JOMEC in this area. I have published academic research on on music festivals, musician presence on social media, live music concerts, digital music fandom and online music cultures.

• Music Journalism: I am currently undertaking a project exploring the roles and impacts of music journalism. I also work on occasion as a music journalist, writing for God is in the TV. 

• Music Fandom: I have been researching how music fandom and audiences are being impacted by technology and the implications that arise out of this. My PhD thesis focused on an online community of R.E.M. fans and their online fandom. I have published further on topics such as the use of technology during live music concerts, the use and implications of Twitter by fans, celebrities and producers, and Lady Gaga, social media and activism. In addition to my published jorunal articles and books in this area, I am on the editorial board of the Journal of Fandom Studies and Transformative Works and Cultures.

• Wales, music and identity: I am currently exploring the connections between music, place, and identity, focusing on Welsh music and the music in Wales. 

• Music industry: My work also explores impacts on key elements of the music industry. I am curremtly collabortaing on a project focused on Patreon and the lived experiences and impact on musicians who use the platform.

Teaching

I teach and design the following undergraduate degree modules:

Popular Music, Media & Culture 

Media Fandom 

I also teach on the History of Mass Communication and Culture core first year BA module, focusing on the Popular Music Industry past and present. 

I have also been the module co-odinator for the Dissertation, and Media and Gender modules. 

Biography

I am a lecturer in the Cardiff School of Journalism, Media and Culture, Cardiff University, with research interests and expertise in Popular Music and Fandom and Fan Cultures. I am also the course director for the BA Degree in Media, Journalism & Culture.

I teach and designed the undergraduate degree modules which run at JOMEC, Cardiff University:

Popular Music, Media & Culture 

Media Fandom  

I also teach on the History of Mass Communication and Culture core first year BA module, focusing on the Popular Music Industry past and present.

I have undertaken consultation work for YouTube in California, advising and producing research on fans and digital fandom. I have appeared on BBC Radio 4 talking about my research on popular music fandom and have given input to The Recording Academy/The Grammies on popular music, social media and authenticity.

I am a regular commentator in national and international media about music fandom and popular music more broadly, interviewed about topics such as live music gigs, camping culture, music fandom and online practices, and artists such as Taylor Swift and Chappell Roan. My comments on music and fandom have appeared on BBC UK News, BBC World News, NBC News, CNN, BBC Radio One Newsbeat, BBC One Points of View, BBC Radio Four, The Washington Post, The Washington Informer, The Guardian, Dazed Media, The Economist, Newsweek, The Daily Beast, Inside Hook, BBC Radio Jersey, Architectural Digest, 20 Minutes, La Repubblica D Magazine, and many more.

I worked with Welsh cultural and music platform AM on research on their audiences, as well as with PYST, a leading music label promoter and music distributor in Wales. In addition I am undertaking research on musicians and digital transformation in the creative economy, Welsh language music and the Welsh music scene and undertaking an analysis of music and fan culture on TikTok. 

I also am involved in music journalism, conducting interviews with bands and musicians, for online music publication God is in the TV. 

I am on the editorial board for the journals New Media & Society, The Journal of Fandom Studies, and Transformative Works and Cultures, On a more local level, I am passionate about the music scene in Cardiff/Wales and am on the jury for the Welsh Music Prize, and on the judging panel for The Forte Project - a mentorship scheme for musicians in Wales. 

I co-founded and co-chair (with Dr Tom Phillips) the Fan Studies Network (https://fanstudies.org/). Involving hundreds of members worldwide, since its launch in 2012 the network has fruitfully forged new connections and collaborations between academics in the field. 

I curated an educational video playlist on Popular Music, Media and Culture for Learning on Screen, which you can access here: https://learningonscreen.ac.uk/bob-curated-playlists/popular-music-media-and-culture/

I have published two books: Crowdfunding the Future: Media Industries, Ethics and Digital Society (edited with Bertha Chin and Bethan Jones, Peter Lang, 2015) and Seeing Fans: Representations of Fandom in Media and Popular Culture (edited with Paul Booth, Bloomsbury, 2016). My work on popular music, digital culture and media appears in journals such as New Media & Society, Transformative Works and Cultures, Celebrity Studies, The Journal of Fandom Studies, Social Semiotics, Discourse, Context & Media, Cinema Journal, Participations and Continuum: Journal of Media and Cultural Studies. 

In 2013 I was highlighted as one of five ‘new voices’ in media and cultural studies by Cinema Journal, journal of the Society for Cinema and Media Studies.

I have worked on a variety of media research project, including a GW4 funded project examining cameras in courtrooms, and was a research assistant on the media strand for the ESRC research project Digital Citizenship and Surveillance Society: UK State-Media-Citizen Relations after the Snowden Leaks. Prior to this, I was also a research associate on a UNHCR funded project examining media representations of refugees in the British press, and undertook research on the represetation of media studies. I worked as a researcher on a number of different projects in the school, including four BBC Trust reviews, including the prominent 2012 BBC Trust impartiality review focusing on breadth of opinion, of which I contributed to the final published report. Prior to my current role in JOMEC, during 2014 I led and designed the module ‘Understanding Culture’ on the MSc at the School of Sociology, Politics and International Studies, University of Bristol.

In 2020 I became a fellow of the Higher Education Academy. 

Supervisions

I would be interested in supervising PhD students in the the areas of:

• Popular music
• Popular music and technology - such as streaming and TikTok
• Music journalism
• Live music concerts and practices, such as camping culture
• Music and Wales/Welsh identity
• Music fans and fandom 
• Media fandom more broadly

Current MPhil and PhD student topics supervised:

• Through Cross-Media Strategies, How Does Danmei Literature-Adapted Film and TV Series in China Respond to Fandom?
• "Peppa Pig: ‘Poor Daddy having to work. Lucky Mummy, you can play at home all day!’ An investigation into the representation of gendered parenthood roles in pre-school and children’s television"

Completed projects supervised: 

• Henry Morgan: Music, platforms and the digital self: the negotiation of identity in online music cultures in the 2010s.

• Bethan Jones: Fandom is Beautiful (Except When It Isn’t): Hatred, Dislike and Toxicity Online

Current supervision

Laura Marie Sinclair

Su Li

Engagement

Media and Public Engagement

I regularly contribute to national and international media as an academic expert on fandom, popular music, digital culture and live music audiences. My public engagement includes broadcast interviews, expert commentary, authored journalism, industry consultancy and research collaborations.

Recent Media Appearances

2026

• The New York Times – Expert commentary for Ariana Grande and the Debate Over Health, Privacy and Celebrity.
• The Guardian – Expert commentary for How Katseye became the world’s biggest girl group – while falling apart.
• BBC Radio 6 Music – Superfans, Series 2 – Featured in episodes focusing on Ozzy Osbourne, Kate Bush and Arctic Monkeys.
• The Conversation – Author of Why indie sleaze feels nostalgic – even for people who never lived it. The article was subsequently featured in The Independent in How social media is trying to recreate ‘indie sleaze’ like Tumblr and MySpace used to.
• Greatest Hits Radio and Absolute Radio – Featured in national news coverage following the death of Bonnie Tyler.
• BBC Radio 6 Music – Superfans – Interviewed for episodes focusing on The Smiths and Charli XCX. My research on fandom was also discussed on the Nick Grimshaw breakfast show. 
• The Conversation – Author of Charli XCX has entered a new era. Here’s why pop’s biggest transformations are no longer just about the music
• Yahoo News – Expert commentary for Why are Game of Thrones fans at war with Breaking Bad fans online?.
• May Contain Hope – Video podcast discussing the importance of hope within music and technology, including artists such as RAYE and Olivia Rodrigo.

Selected International Media Engagement

I have provided expert commentary on fandom, popular music and digital culture for a wide range of national international media, including BBC World News, BBC News, BBC Radio 4, BBC Radio 1 Newsbeat, BBC Radio 2, BBC Radio Jersey, CNN, NBC, The Washington Post, The Economist, The Guardian, The Independent, Newsweek, Dazed, Architectural Digest, The Daily Beast, InsideHook, 20 Minutes and Yahoo News.

Recent examples include:

• CNN – Analysis of Chappell Roan's relationship with fans, parasocial relationships and changing expectations around celebrity privacy: Chappell Roan and the new boundaries of fan culture.
• Dazed – Expert commentary on live music fan behaviour and concert fan camping culture.
• The Economist – Commentary on stan fandom and online fan culture.
• InsideHook – Commentary on TikTok, the music industry and music fandom.
• The Daily Beast – Commentary for How TikTok and Tech Gave Kylie Minogue the Song of the Summer.
• Newsweek – Commentary for Yes, You Can Sing Along at the Taylor Swift Eras Concert Film.
• Architectural Digest – Expert commentary featured throughout Inside the Homes Where Passionate Fandoms Come to Life.
• 20 Minutes – Commentary on Taylor Swift fandom and conspiracy theories.

Live Music Audiences and Fan Behaviour

My research on music fan behaviour and etiquette at live music events has received extensive international media coverage. My analysis has featured in BBC World News, BBC News, The Washington Post, The Guardian, Correio Braziliense, l'édition du soir par Ouest-France, the New Zealand Herald, The Washington Informer, United News of Bangladesh and BFMTV France.

I was interviewed by BBC Radio 1 Newsbeat, BBC Radio Jersey and NBC National TV News on the topic, and my views were also summarised on BBC Radio 2.

I also contributed to a Vote for Schools debate on the issue, responding to the views of more than 20,000 UK schoolchildren who voted on whether there should be more rules at live music events. The results and my video response are available here.

Industry, Cultural and Research Engagement

I have undertaken consultancy and research work with YouTube in California, advising on fans and digital fandom and producing research for the platform. I have also provided input to The Recording Academy (The Grammys) on popular music, social media and authenticity.

In Wales, I have worked with cultural and music platform AM on research into its audiences, and with PYST, a leading Welsh music label, promoter and distributor.

My current and recent research and knowledge-exchange activity includes work on musicians and digital transformation in the creative economy, Welsh-language music and the Welsh music scene, and music and fan culture on TikTok.

Music Journalism

Alongside my academic work, I contribute to music journalism, conducting interviews with bands and musicians for online music publication God Is in the TV.