“I can’t imagine a city with that much life in it dying.”
Lionel Richie’s words ring true about New Orleans as the city is in the middle of hosting the Essence Music Festival.
Richie is one of the headline performers in the three-day event ending Saturday along with other artists such as Ludacris, Ciara and Beyonce and Mary J. Blige.
Democratic presidential hopefuls Sens. Barack Obama and Hillary Rodham Clinton are also on the event schedule.
But whether Obama is delivering a fiery speech or Beyonce is belting out a soulful ballad, the festival brings a much-needed boost to New Orleans in terms of economic and psychological shortcomings.
After being held in Houston this past year thanks to Hurricane Katrina, the festival began its comeback Thursday in a city that was 80 percent flooded almost two years ago.
The Times-Picayune reported the festival is estimated to draw nearly 200,000 visitors and inject almost $150 million in the city’s economy.
Events like the Essence Music Festival will help New Orleans on its path to recovery. The city has already shown it can still host a large-scale party. The Allstate Sugar Bowl, New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival, Mardi Gras and Voodoo Music Experience have all gone off in the city without any problems – the numbers speak for themselves.
Estimates show nearly 800,000 people flocked to the city for Mardi Gras; 375,000 attended Jazz Fest; Voodoo Fest attracted nearly 90,000 fans in 2006, which prompted festival organizers to expand the event from two days to three for this year’s experience.
The Arena Football championship game, the college football national championship game and the NBA All-Star game are also on New Orleans’ schedule of events in the coming year.
The Essence Music Festival serves as a good event for students to attend, should they get the opportunity this weekend. Tickets start at $45.
The musical performances will be held in the Louisiana Superdome, which is within walking distance of all the sights that make New Orleans a special city.
But the return of the Essence Music Festival to the city is simply another small step in the right direction.
Crime rates have eclipsed pre-Katrina levels, and the city reportedly only has 58 percent of its pre-Katrina population.
Despite those numbers, Essence officials have extended its contract with New Orleans to host the event through 2009.
Now, it is up to the city, tourists and residents to help New Orleans continue on its long road to recovery.
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