Beyoncé, Maxwell, Anita Baker, Al Green, John Legend, Robin Thicke, Salt-N-Pepa, Ne-Yo, En Vogue, Sierra Leone Refugee All Stars, Teena Marie and more than 30 acts will perform at the 15th annual Essence Music Festival July 3-5 at the Superdome in New Orleans, LA.
The critically acclaimed annual celebration of music and empowerment has also updated its list of seminars, which will include appearances from Bill Cosby, Donna Brazile, Tom Joyner, Hill Harper and Sheryl Lee Ralph, among others.
General admission daily tickets are $51, $67 and $79; floor seats are $92 and $121; Gold Circle tickets are $173 plus applicable service charges. In honor of the Festival’s 15th Anniversary, there is a 15 percent discount on weekend ticket packages through February 15. Tickets are available through Ticketmaster.
Also performing are Solange, Eric Benet, Jazmine Sullivan, Janelle Monae, Raphael Saadiq, Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings, Zap Mama, The Knux, Irvin Mayfield, Lalah Hathaway, Blind Boys of Alabama, Ledisi, Marva Wright, Big Sam’s Funky Nation, Brand New Heavies, Dan Dyer, DJ Soul Sister, Keri Hilson, Preservation Hall Jazz Band, Rebirth Brass Band, Trombone Shorty and Orleans Ave. In addition, the entire weekend of musical performances will be MC’ed by Jonathan Slocumb. More artists will be announced shortly.
“To mark the Essence Music Festival’s 15-year anniversary, we wanted to really celebrate all the forms of music that have been central to the event’s history,” said Michelle Ebanks, president of Essence Communications Inc., in a statement. “Our audience is truly loyal, and we made every effort to come up with a special line-up that’s multi-generational and spans diverse genres; it brings together heritage artists, new chart-topping acts and local favorites in New Orleans.”
The empowerment seminars are free of charge and are open to the public on a first-come, first-served basis. The festival is executive produced by Essence Festivals LLC and produced by Rehage Entertainment. Essence Festivals LLC is a division of Essence Communications Inc.
