Billboard's Music Industry Events Calendar: The Biggest Festivals and Conferences of 2026

A full year of music industry dates

Billboard has updated its running music industry events calendar, covering conferences, festivals, awards ceremonies, and networking gatherings from May through July 2026 and beyond. The list, published at billboard.com, is positioned as the most complete summary of major national and international happenings for professionals and fans alike.

May highlights

The season opens with a cluster of events in the second week of May. The Music Biz conference runs May 11 to 14 in Atlanta, while The Great Escape festival takes place May 13 to 16 in Brighton, England. On May 17, the Academy of Country Music Awards lands in Las Vegas. Later in the month, the American Music Awards follow on May 25, also in Las Vegas.

Other notable May dates include the Ivor Novello Awards on May 21 in London, BottleRock Napa Valley from May 22 to 24, and the Sueños festival in Chicago on May 23 and 24.

June gets dense

June is the busiest stretch on the calendar. SXSW makes its London debut from June 1 to 6. Primavera Sound Barcelona runs June 4 to 6, and the Governors Ball Festival in New York follows from June 5 to 7. Bonnaroo occupies June 11 to 14 in Manchester, Tennessee.

Later in June, Sonar Festival returns to Barcelona from June 18 to 20, and the Festival International de Jazz de Montreal opens June 25, running through July 4.

Into July

July brings Rock Werchter in Rotselaar, Belgium (July 2 to 5), the ESSENCE Festival of Culture in New Orleans (July 3 to 5), and the Montreux Jazz Festival in Switzerland, which stretches from July 3 to 18. Mad Cool festival in Madrid is set for July 8 to 11.

Industry conferences alongside the stages

Beyond festivals, the calendar tracks business-facing events: the AIMS AI Music Summit in Boston runs June 3 to 5, A2IM Indie Week is scheduled for June 8 to 11 in New York, and the Africa Rising Music Conference takes place May 22 to 23 in Johannesburg. The breadth of the list reflects how packed the mid-year window has become for the global music business.