ROOTED IN CULTURE: My overdue return to New Orleans Essence Festival
Me hanging out at the media immersion experience at Essence House.
They say better late than never, well, that phrase is serving a dual purpose for this blog post.
It took me a while to hit publish on this post but not for lack of trying— I’ve been on at least six other trips and survived two hurricanes since I first started writing this. But sometimes things just come in divine timing, kind of like me ending my 12-year Essence Festival hiatus this summer in July.
Yes, July. I know, but hear me out.
It really has been so much happening that this trip to New Orleans feels like years ago but its only been a few months since I spent four days in the New Orleans sweltering heat in my old stomping grounds for the annual culture and heritage festival.
Essence Festival is by far the Blackest festival in the U.S. I know this for a fact because I’ve been to an absurd amount of festivals (of all types) and large scale events over the years— for both work and for fun. There aren’t too many that touch Essence Fest on a cultural level. It’s Black excellence on full dispay… but I’ll get to that later.
I came of age in New Orleans. I grew up just across the state line in southwest Mississippi. I had cousins, aunts and uncles who lived outside the City in suburbs, like Mandeville, Algeirs, Alexandria, Lafayette. When I was a little girl, my dad would stop at Fountinbleau State Park on the Northshore sometimes on his long-haul truck drives to let my sisters and me play on the lakefront. As I got older in my teenage years, I’d go with family to Mardi Gras parades during Carnival season. That’s where my love of revelry started I think— catching beads and scrambling for the last piece of sugar-coated king cake was the highlight of many high school and later college days.
I can’t remember exactly what year I swapped the revelry of Mardi Gras for the magic of Essence Fest, but I do remember the feeling I had when I first experienced it years ago as a college student— it felt like a family reunion. But not just any family reunion, a family reunion with all your favorite bougie, successful cousins that are happy to see you, celebrate you and turn up for your accomplishments with you.
Essence has the type of energy and vibration that reminds you exactly who you are and what you’re all about. Similar to the city that hosts this life-changing experience, it’s rooted in the vibrancy and magic of Black culture.
do you know what it means to miss new Orleans?
As a journalist, I had the opportunity to attend the Essence Festival media immersion experiences all week.
I moved from New Orleans to Florida for my first news reporter job in July 2010. I used to make the 10-hour drive from Tampa to New Orleans every six weeks or so when I first moved. I was really homesick and the culture shock I experienced moving from a place with such a rich, diverse history to conservative southwest Florida was no joke. It also didn’t help that right before I made the move, I went to my last Essence Festival for over a decade— it was filled with beautiful Black women, sultry summer nights on Bourbon Street, and too many beignets to count.
I had been itching to go the past couple of summers so I made it a point to attend this July. As I started making plans for the trip, I saw that this summer was the 30th anniversary of the iconic festival that I used to party my way through so many years ago. The timing couldn’t have been any better.
I knew it was time to go back, for younger me, and do it right.
NEW ORLEANS Essence Festival 1o1
There’s a lot to do in New Orleans. As someone who grew up not far from there, lived there for a couple of years during college, and played there for A LOT of years after, I consider myself an expert.
There’s even MORE to do in N.O. when there’s a festival in the city; for New Orleans, there isn’t a bigger festival than Essence.
Essence is among the highest-attended festivals in the country. Over half a million people converge in New Orleans every July to amplify and celebrate fashion, wellness, music, and all things Black culture.
It’s like a conference hooked up with a high-energy festival and give birth to a vibey four-day experience that makes you proud AF to be a part of the diaspora.
Most of the professional action happens inside the New Orleans Convention Center. There are dozens (probably hundreds) of perfectly-timed panel discussions, talk-backs, and demonstrations across the 1-mile convention center. The wealth and breadth of conversations that happen inside the convention center during Essence is the bread and butter of the experience. It’s what I focused most of my trip on after so many years on an Essence hiatus.
Chatting about brunch and journalism with Nikole Hannah-Jones after her Brewing Change panel at Essence this summer.
Out of the gate my return to Essence was worth the wait. On day one of the conference, I attended a panel about the state of Black America that featured fellow journalist Nikole Hannah-Jones and others. I’ve been a fan and admirer of her work and especially her disruption of the media industry since her 1619 Project podcast, before the book.
We chatted about our Mississippi roots, brunch, and how the newspaper industry desperately needs more Black reporters for a few minutes; it took everything in me not to fan girl if I’m being real. She was just as dope as I expected her to be; to me it felt like a conversation with a close work friend. It was one of those synchronistic moments that underscores the purpose and vibrancy of Essence. Two female, Black journalists talking about the impact of racism in New Orleans during Essence Festival. (Stay in alignment ladies.)
Casear’s Superdome on night 2 of Essence Festival.
Then you have those after-hours, here for a good time activities that happen all around New Orleans and of course the main event— the nightly concerts at Caesar’s Superdome. Essence Concerts are legendary. For the 30th anniversary, the media professionals were hosted at the Superdome and got the chance to interview legendary hip hop and r&b artists like Method Man, Charlie Wilson and new up and comers like Victoria Monet and other rising music stars.
The 30th Concert Festival culminated with a performance from Usher and a tribute to Essence legends and New Orleans-native Frankie Beverly & Mase.
A NOLA Girls Guide to Essence Festival of Culture
Now that you have a sense of what Essence Festival is and who its target audience is, I can give you the rundown on how to do the multi-day experience right. Here’s my four-day New Orleans itinerary, and a few pro tips, to get you ready for Essence Festival 2025.
Reserve your lodging EARLY!: New Orleans hotels and lodging book up fast. Most people begin booking for Essence in the spring, but I typically book around nine months out for Essence because of its popularity. Prices skyrocket once the festival entertainment lineup drops in February/March so to be sure to snag a hotel room, book by January at the latest. Where to stay: if you’re a hotel girlie and don’t mind a walk, I’d suggest one of the Marriott hotels along Canal St. This year, I booked a suite at the Springhill Suites a couple of blocks from the convention center. I was able to walk back and forth to the center and to the press room in Mid-City easily. Budget for around $2,000 for a four night stay in New Orleans at most mid-range, chain hotels.
Arrive a day early to avoid travel crowds: Essence Festival runs annually Thursday - Sunday, every 4th of July weekend. The four-day event kicks off usually around July 3 but if you’re smart, you’d arrive the day before the official festivities start to enjoy the city, restaurants and the rich culture around the city before the crowds convene for the festival.
Put that sh** on!: Essence is where fashion x culture converge. One of the biggest draws to the event is the bold, cultural and mesmerizing fashion you will encounter throughout the city of New Orleans. Fashion at Essence is an event in itself. Pack your best fits, eye-catching accessories, and vintage pieces because Essence is THE place to see and be seen. It’s all about the fits, flicks and fashion— get into it and express yourself with your style!
Let your hair down, but party wisely: The spirit of Essence is a party in itself so it’s pretty easy to catch a vibe all around the city. New Orleans is most known for revelry and indulgence, but Essence brings an opportunity to tap into the cultural roots of the vibrant city and amplify what makes us, us. If I had to suggest only one party to go to during Essence, it would be the annual White Party at the Metropolitan. (It simply doesn’t get any Black-er than a white party in mid summer.) Get in there early to watch a sea of BEAUTIFUL Black people in a sea of fashionable all-white ensembles flood into one of NOLA’s most famous clubs for an elevated, summer soiree. Pack the Liquid IV and HYDRATE. New Orleans in July is brutal but you can have an amazing experience if you can manage to stay cool.
Don’t skip out on the conference: With dozens of stages, panel discussions, talk-backs, and keynotes, the heart of the festival — the conference — offers three days of education, resources, connections, and behind-the-scenes opportunities for attendees. The conference houses different sectors and industries making it easy for attendees to find everything they're looking for. This year, the Global Black Economic Forum was expanded at the convention center to have in-depth and thought-provoking discussions about African Americans’ stake in the global economy. There’s also a Black market, a massive food court, a wellness house, mini film festival and more all housed within the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center. And the best part is, entry into the convention center is free throughout the festival.
I’ve been to Essence almost a dozen times and returning this year for the 30th anniversary helped me realize that it was an experience and opportunity I deeply needed as a Black woman in the U.S. Growing up an hour from there, I never took being so close to New Orleans for granted. It’s the only place in the country I’ve ever felt feels like “home”. It’s a place I return to often to recenter and to re-root myself you could say. No matter how many times I step foot in New Orleans it always gives me something I need— a meal, a sultry summer night on a dance floor, a fresh start, or a boost of creativity.
If you’ve ever thought about visiting New Orleans for the Essence Festival of Culture, I implore you to do it. I fully believe it’s something every Black woman in the country should experience at least once in her life. Your soul, and all that you are, belongs there.
