The Essence Music Festival has been a staple among the African-American community for the past 19 years.
The festival, which takes place in New Orleans each year, focuses on entertainment and hot button issues that matter most the African-American community. More than 400,000 attendees from all over the nation flocked to the Big Easy this past weekend to see acts such as Beyoncé, Charlie Wilson, Solange, Trey Songz, New Edition, and many more, as they performed at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome.
The festival also took over the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center, where the events were free and doors were open to the public from 8:00 a.m to 7:00 p.m.
The music was booming from inside, and attendees were invited to dance, learn, win prizes, and network with each other. Booths and stages were set up by sponsors, including, Coca Cola, McDonalds, Ford, Verizon, and Wal-Mart.
There were also booths set up by different television networks such as MSNBC and We TV, which gathered crowds with their live broadcasts and stars from their most popular shows.
The main attraction at the convention center was undeniably the large amount of celebrities in attendance. Mobs of people flocked to get pictures with actors such as Blair Underwood and Boris Kodjoe. Funny-man Kevin Hart also took the time to meet with fans.
Actress Robinne Lee, who stars in BET’s latest dramedy, “Being Mary Jane,” was a first timer to both the Essence Music Festival and the city of New Orleans.
“I’m loving it,” said Lee. “I feel like New Orleans lives up to everything I’ve seen about it, read about it, heard about it. The food, the music, the energy, the spirit, it just feels so alive.”
Essence Fest, which is known as the “party with a purpose,” lived up to that description through its lectures and panel discussions.
Speakers at the convention center’s ‘Empowerment’ seminars included Michelle Williams, Iyanla Vanzant, Dr. Steve Perry, Steve Harvey, former New Orleans Mayor Marc Morial, and many more prominent figures in African-American media.
The numerous panel discussions throughout the weekend covered topics such as, ‘Solutions for Your Success,” and ‘Family & Community.” Attendees were able to learn from the speakers, and were inspired to leave the festival and improve the state of their own lives, as well as the state of their communities. Fans were also able to ask the panelists questions via Twitter by using hash tags that were specific to each topic.
On Saturday, McDonalds partnered up with Essence to present the 10th Annual McDonald’s 365 Black Awards hosted by Oscar nominated actress, Taraji P. Henson. The awards honored legendary singer Gladys Knight, the first African-American supermodel, Beverly Johnson, Chicago White Sox Vice President Kenny Williams, author and educator Dr. Steve Perry, among others. The honorees were recognized for their “efforts in strengthening the community.” The awards show will air on BET in August.
From partying on Bourbon Street to family-friendly events at the convention center and star-studded concerts each night, the Essence Music Festival features something for all ages. As this year’s attendees pack their bags and return home, the producers of the festival are already cooking up ideas to bring them back for next year’s festival.
If the line-up is anything like this year’s, there surely won’t be any issues when trying to bring people back to the lively Essence Music Festival; an event that truly embodies the rich spirit of New Orleans.