ESSENCE FESTIVAL ‘BRINGS THE LOVE’ TO NEW ORLEANS WITH COMMEMORATIVE ‘DAY OF SERVICE’ ON JULY 2

In Partnership with NOLA FOR LIFE and Walmart

The 21st annual ESSENCE Festival celebrated the beloved city of New Orleans with a dedicated ‘Day of Service’. On Thursday, July 2nd from 10:00am – 2:00pm, 1000 volunteers teamed up with ESSENCE, NOLA FOR LIFE and Walmart to ‘Bring The Love’ to the community through a focus on achievement for local youth, promoting literacy and healthy living.

Essence Fest 2015 kicked off Thursday in New Orleans at the Mercedes Benz Superdome and ran for four days through Sunday, July 5th. Kevin Hart, Trey Songz and Lecrae were some of the celebrities featured on the “Now Playing” opening concert on Thursday night. Frankie Beverly and Maze returned to Essence Fest, however for the first time in five years, Maze headlined the main stage. Essence Festival once again featured the four club-level Superlounges offering up a more intimate feel than the main stage. Old School acts like Doug E. Fresh, and Slick Rick played in the Superlounges as well as Kool Moe Dee, Mystikal and Common.

The ESSENCE Festival’s ‘Day of Service’ included refurbishing local schools in the 9th Ward and New Orleans East, as well as a community health fair and book drive. The school restoration project consisted of painting projects and grounds beautification, while the Community Health Fair provided screenings, vision & dental services and life coaching. Supporters showcased their commitment by donating a new or gently-used book suitable for young-adults.

“With our inaugural ESSENCE Festival ‘Day of Service’ celebrating the resilience of New Orleans 10 years after the damaging effects of Hurricane Katrina,” said ESSENCE President Michelle Ebanks. “We are inviting all of our loyal Festival attendees, partners and friends to join our mission to ‘Bring the Love’ by giving back to our youth, supporting healthy lifestyles and encouraging a love of reading.”

“ESSENCE is once again proving its strong partnership with New Orleans and NOLA FOR LIFE as residents, visitors, volunteers, and community partners come together to improve the quality of life for our families and our children,” said Judy Reese Morse, Deputy Mayor of Citywide Initiatives for the City of New Orleans. “One of our major goals in NOLA FOR LIFE is ensuring that people are involved in their communities and see investments in all neighborhoods. This ESSENCE Festival ‘Day of Service’ will have a great impact in New Orleans East.”.

The final night of the Essence Music Festival took place at New Orleans’ Mercedes Benz Superdome Sunday, July 6. New newcomers like Lianne de Havas and SZA graced the stage. Regular headliner, Mary J. Blige played the main stage before Kendrick Lamar, the first rapper to close out the festival on their first appearance at Essence Fest.

Due to the rain late Sunday afternoon, Floetry opened the main stage at 7 p.m. to a venue with less than 50% of the audience in attendance. With both artist at opposite ends of the stage, Marsha Ambrosius they went into “Butterflies”, a tribute to Michael Jackson around 7:15pm.

Lianne La Havas touched the Ford stage with her new single, “Unstoppable” with the audience cheering in approval. The U.K. singer-songwriter stood and sang as the band rocked out behind her. After La Havas started her set, Ma$e powered up his set over at the Coca-Cola Art of Hip-Hop Superlounge. He reminded attendees of his many hits with “Tell Me What You Want,” “Lookin’ At Me,” and “Can’t Hold Me Down.” The Harlem rapper touched briefly on each song, reminding everyone of his roots in the music scene.

Tweet shortly followed suite after Ma$e on her stage at the Verizon Now Playing Superlounge, featuring songs from her LP Southern Hummingbird.

Mary J. Blige was nothing short of spectacular during her time on the main stage. NYC streets appeared on the screens behind her as “Real Love” came and went to “Love Is All We Need”. You could notice the singer enjoying herself as she bounced throughout the duration of the songs. Method Man made a guest appearance, putting his arm around her neck and bopping to the beat.

Kendrick Lamar was the last act for Essence Fest 2015. Lamar kicked off the stage with “Money Trees” and censored himself a bit before getting settled in to “Bitch Don’t Kill My Vibe”, “Swimming Pools” and “M.A.A.D City.” Lamar also showed love to his fan during his set “My first show I did was out here in New Orleans. I had about 200 dedicated fans, and I see some of them here tonight. I’ll never forget that.”

ESSENCE and its ‘Day of Service’ partnered with NOLA FOR LIFE and Walmart thanking the first 1000 volunteers for their love and support gifting them with an exclusive ESSENCE #BringTheLove T-shirt. To sign up to volunteer and get transportation information, visit www.essence.com/dayofservice.

Join the Festival community: follow us on Twitter @essencefest #EssenceFest and become a fan of ESSENCE Festival on Facebook.
Sponsors of the 2015 ESSENCE Festival include presenting sponsor Coca-Cola and major sponsors Ford, McDonald’s, My Black Is Beautiful, Samsung Galaxy, State Farm, Verizon, and Walmart. Superlounge sponsors include Coca-Cola, Ford, Verizon and Walmart. The All-Star Gospel Tribute was sponsored by Walmart.

Photo Credit: K/D/Morris