On June 29, 2017, 470,000 fans flocked to the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans, LA for four days of music, along with empowerment seminars, beauty expos, shopping, and southern eats at the 2017 Essence Music Festival.
Headliners included legends like Chaka Khan, Diana Ross, India.Arie, and newcomers such as Jazmine Sullivan, Jhene Aiko, and Elle Varner. It’s safe to say if you weren’t there, you missed out. Check out some of the highlights below.
Xscape perform to packed audience
Video courtesy of Youtube.com
After a 15 year hiatus, Tameka “Tiny” Harris, Tamika Scott, Kandi Burruss and LaTocha Scott, are back proving that their talent is timeless.
The quartet easily packed out the Essence Superlounge, one of the side stages of the festivals. Hundreds waited in line to catch a glimpse of the group until the fire marshal had to keep people out as the stage reached capacity.
Those fans waiting outside of the stage chanted and demanded for the 90’s girl group to reschedule the performance to the main stage. The question remains as to why the group was scheduled to perform on a smaller stage, usually reserved for artists without a huge following.
Mary J keeps it real on cheating
Even though the songstress has 9 Grammys under her belt, she still proved to be relatable when it comes to the topic of cheating. As if “Enough Cryin” wasn’t powerful enough to display the emotions she’s felt from her very public divorce, Mary J had some words of advice to the men out in the audience. “You can only have one queen, not two queens, not three queens,” she said. “One queen. Take care of home and you’ll be alright.”
Chance invites hearing impaired fans to show free of charge
If your Deaf or HOH and are in New Orleans Sunday, I want you to come to Essence Fest free of charge. pic.twitter.com/In1F8WR8g3
— Lil Chano From 79th (@chancetherapper) July 1, 2017
The list of reasons to love Chance grows every day. Chance invited fans who are legally deaf or hard of hearing to attend the last day of the festival, free of charge. With the addition of an ASL interpreter to his upcoming shows, his shows are guaranteed to be accessible and enjoyable to all.
Maxine Waters comes for Trump and his camp
Nobody with ties to the oval office was safe from Maxine Waters’ tirade against the 45th administration. Ben Carson, Betsy DeVos, Steve Mnuchin, and the president himself all came under fire during the speech she gave before an enthusiastic crowd. She vowed to not stop fighting against Trump. “I don’t honor him, I don’t respect him and I am not going to tolerate him. I am going to do everything I can do to get him impeached,” she said.
Diana Ross proves why she’s queen
With a performance so exclusive no photos or videos were allowed, Diana Ross was every bit of the legend she is proclaimed to be. Her performance brought out people of several different generations, including stars like Dasha Polanco, Anthony Anderson, Ava DuVernay, and more. Three wardrobe changes later and seemingly every hit of Ross’ musical career, she stunned the crowd with a rendition of “All I Do is Win” by DJ Khaled. Right she is.
The 2018 Essence Festival is only guaranteed to be bigger and better. Be on the lookout for tickets in the next upcoming months.
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