Usher and Janet Jackson headline 30th Essence Festival of Culture

NEW ORLEANS — The best policy makers, thought leaders, creatives, spiritual gurus, business people, health experts and of course musical talent from Black culture will gather in New Orleans over the 4th of July weekend as part of the Essence Festival of Culture.

The festival begins Thursday and runs through Sunday. This year, it celebrates 30 years of entertaining, networking and thought-provoking conversations to find solutions to problems facing urban communities. The underlying premise remains the same: partying with purpose.

Vice President Kamala Harris is expected to hold a conversation with Essence CEO Caroline Wanga during the festival’s Global Black Economic Forum on Saturday. The visit comes amid calls from some to replace President Joe Biden on the Democratic presidential ticket following his debate with former President Donald Trump. Such in-depth dialogues, covering a wide range of topics, can be expected at the event.

“This experience was built to celebrate 25 years of Essence magazine, Black womanhood,” said Hakeem Holmes, vice president of the Essence Festival of Culture. “Black women built this festival, Black women gave it their all to this festival. They had a great time at this festival, they built relationships, they networked — all at this festival — and then they took what they learned home with them.”

Since its inception, the festival has grown into a multigenerational event that aims to reach the entire Black family by offering “a little bit of everything for everyone,” Holmes said.

Much of that transition, Holmes said, is due to the city that hosts the event every year except one. In 2006, Houston hosted the festival while New Orleans dealt with the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.

Lisa Alexis, director of Mayor Latoya Cantrell’s Office of the Cultural Economy, said 30 years of Essence has had a $327 million impact on the city.

“It started as a party with a purpose, but over the years they’ve expanded that,” Alexis said. “We now have the Black Global Economic Forumthe film festival, a wellness area, a marketplace. Through this partnership, our companies have the opportunity to be part of the supplier market, and we can share and support each other as our cultural entrepreneurs want to grow.”

Giving back keeps the festival relevant, Holmes said.

“Relevance is driven by our relationship with this community,” said Holmes, a New Orleans resident. “We’re constantly listening. … We have what people want to see at this event. We have people who come to talk about things they can do next when they get home. And we have the parties!”

Holmes says it’s always a challenge to keep loyal fans engaged with the festival.

“It’s like you’re expecting something new, but you’re still keeping the familiar,” he said. “I think it’s like going to church every Sunday. You get a different sermon from the same person, but for whatever reason, every Sunday you’re touched differently. That’s the essence of the festival. It’s a community gathering. It’s a homecoming. It’s a reunion. And I think that’s what draws people in and keeps them engaged.”

Holmes said the festival will be held both physically and virtually (via essence.com ). “We give people everything they want in a consolidated amount of time during the day and then in the evening they can go out and have a good time,” he said.

That good time includes a Friday night concert at the Superdome featuring Bryan “Birdman” Williams and friends as they too celebrate 30 years of Cash Money Records and its Millionaires. Juvenile, Busta Rhymes, T-Pain, The Roots and Mannie Fresh are scheduled to perform. R&B-singers Jacquees and Ari Lennox and country artist Mickey Guyton will also take the stage.

Usher headlines Saturday and celebrates the 20th anniversary of his album “Confessions,” featuring hits like “Yeah,” “Burn,” “Caught Up” and “Bad Girl.” “Confessions” has sold over 10 million copies in the U.S. Others scheduled to perform include Charlie Wilson, Ayra Starr, Big Boi, Donell Jones, Lloyd, Method Man, Sheila E. and TGT — a trio featuring Tyrese, Ginuwine and Tank.

Janet Jackson is the headliner on Sunday, the final evening. Victoria MonetKeke Palmer, Teedra Moses, Tank and the Bangas, Dawn Richard, SWV, Jagged Edge, Bilal and Anthony Hamilton will also perform. The four-day event will conclude with the return of the all-white party and a special tribute to Frankie Beverly & Maze, put together by Grammy Award-winning producer and songwriter Bryan-Michael Cox. Beverly has said he is retiring from live performances and the group has been on a farewell tour.

During the first 15 years of the festival, Frankie Beverly was & Maze closed the event with a grand performance, watched by thousands who sang along to the group’s hits including “Before I Let Go,” “Joy and Pain” and “Happy Feelin’s.” In 2010, a new event producer ended the tradition to the disappointment of many festival-goers, despite the talent brought in to close the event, which included Beyoncé, Mary J. Blige and Lionel Richie.

“This is our big goodbye to Frankie & Maze,” Holmes said. “It’ll be a mix of him singing and others singing to him. It’ll be a real, here-are-your-flowers moment.”

This year, organizers want to celebrate milestones, Holmes said.

“To have Usher and Janet on the same bill. Such pioneers in their genre. What we’re ultimately seeing in this 30th year is a passing of the torch in culture and music. Victoria Monét on the same night as Janet. That’s what you’re going to see night after night. A chronology of acts that are reminiscent, that are multi-generational, that give people what they want to see,” he said.