Ahhhh, Essence Festival. Every Black Women’s personal oasis. There’s so much to say about this dynamic experience and New Orleans overall. It’s an entire VIBE. I’ve always wanted to attend Essence Festival as I’d seen and heard so much about it in years past. However, either I couldn’t afford it or I failed to plan in advance so I managed to miss it…year after year. This year was different. I’m finally able to check “Essence Fest” off of my bucket list.

If you’ve never attended or heard of Essence Festival or if you’ve heard of it but you’re not exactly sure of what all it entails and what to expect (when you attend), Sis…I’ve got you covered!

 

What is Essence Festival:

Essence Festival is a source of Black Girl Magic, that consists of a plethora of experiences and interactions; which are mapped out over a three-day period. It’s literally a combination of all things that are relevant to black culture. I’m talking Empowerment, Community Relations, Financial literacy, Beauty, Health & Wellness, Music, Fashion, Politics, Spirituality and Star-Studded entertainment. During the Day… there are empowerment sessions, fitness classes, and vendor booths comprised of everything a woman could want. From Natural Hair Products, and Makeup, as well as handmade custom jewelry and fashion boutiques stocked full of head turners that’ll easily lead to a Fashion Frenzy (so leave space in that luggage, ladies ’cause you’re gonna need somewhere to store all of the bomb goodies you find).

 

What to Do:

While there, I shopped with a few of my favorite brands (Meow & Barks Boutique, Lip Bar, & Mess in a Bottle, etc.). I also received a few SWAG bags filled with all kinds of goodies ranging from skincare, makeup, and haircare products.

During the day, I took part in empowerment sessions, exploring restaurants and shopping. I maxed out in the VIP lounge during the afternoon, and I sang/rapped, & danced my heart out each and every night during the three-day festival… IT. WAS. LITTY! I didn’t capture all of my looks during the festival ’cause I was running late getting there, each and every night. (I’m definitely going to do much better with this next year though).

But I digress…

There were THOUSANDS of attendees. I was super excited that I’d finally had the opportunity to meet my all-time favorite Youtuber, Jackie Aina! I was remised that I missed Kela Walker (of Kela’s Closet) but It’s cool, I plan on attending next year and I’m manifesting that I’ll get to meet her then.

The television show Power is one of my faves aside from the series Insecure. I was stoked that the cast was there. I still can’t believe I got to see them in real, actual life. Essence Festival is just such an experience. Like, seriously…where else can you see your favorite, TV cast, shop your fave boutiques, meet and greet with celebrity youtubers, Mayors, NAACP activists, money moguls, gospel sensations, fitness guru’s and A-list Bloggers all in one room! Lol… I’m just saying… Where Sis?

Another one of my most memorable moments was having the opportunity to breath THE EXACT SAME AIR as Lil Kim and Mary J. Blige! Like, say TF WHAT? I still believe I manifested Lil’ Kim’s surprise performance because I kept saying “Lil Kim will be at Essence” and the night of the show… I swore I’d pass out if she showed up for Mary’s performance and though I didn’t pass out per se… I definitely caught the entire spirit! I almost broke out in praise dance, lol! It was sooooo good. They’ve both served as great inspiration for me so to have the privilege of seeing them both perform, it was EVERYTHING to me! AND as if that wasn’t enough, prior to that, I’d had the joy of seeing Missy Elliott and Monica perform together as well (I set the expectation to see Miss Thang as well, so y’all already know, I went all the way AWF for both performances!!! I also took a little trip to Bourbon Street as well… It had the potential to be fun but I ended up turning in a lot earlier than planned (BUT… next year, I’ll have a full report for yall! Lol)

Where to EAT:

My absolute favorite restaurant experience was hands-down MULATES. Listen! The bread pudding is the best bread pudding I’ve EVER had (sorry Grandma!). It’s so BOMB. Also, the wings and the Shrimp Etouffee brought joy to my soul. It was the absolute best. Even the Sweet Tea was jumping, JUMPIN’! I did y’all a solid, too. I asked the Lyft drivers where to go for the best food and they provided me with some recommendations. I always enjoy hearing the locals perspective because they be knowin’. If you’re attending next year, be sure to bookmark this article so you’ll have a quick reference to refer back to.

Of all of the recommendations Neyow’s Creole Café, Elizabeth’s, Ace Hotel and Acme Oyster House, La Petite Grocery (this is where Will Smith and Jada Pinkett-Smith eat when they visit), Landry’s (cajan seafood), Sweet Soul Food, Dragos, Mother’s, Willies, French Market, Jacquesimos, Brigstens Fine Dining and Woody’s were mentioned consistently! I can absolutely vouch for Brunch at Elizabeth’s! It was the truth. I’m a bit of a cheese grits connoisseur and their grits were the business!

Neyow’s was definitely a VIBE, especially for people watching. It’s extremely popular so expect to wait (40+ minutes), if you go during Essence Festival.

Also, I went to Curio which is a cute little spot located in the French Quarter. I wanted to have a few drinks before hitting the show and this spot did not disappoint.I went for drinks but I ended up ordering  this really delicious dessert… because what’s a drink without a little chocolate delight on the side?

 

It was so GOOD! I heard the food is great as well… but I can only vouch for the drinks and the dessert 🙂

The locals swear by pralines… I had some when I hit the French Quarter and they were so FRESH… the best I’ve ever had for sure. New Orleans definitely spoiled me with good food. I can’t wait to got back with my hubs, it’s such a romantic city.

Speaking of Romance, they have a bar that’s an actual carousel that rotates. It’s so cool so definitely be sure to check that out as well. I went but it was crowded by the time I’d gotten there so definitely go early if you wanna snag a seat!

 

BOMB! Nail Shop M.A.D. Nails:

 

 

A Funky Fresh mani is a great way to play up your look, especially when attending festivals and such. If you plan on going a day early (as I do), you MUST check out MAD NAILS while visiting New Orleans. I planned to get my nails done while there (as I didn’t have time to do it before hand (due to my travel schedule). The customer service is next level. I had two glasses of bubbly, and then they we’re so kind as to hook me up with a nicely brewed cup of coffee as well. (I was like yasss QUEEN, this is my kinda service right here!) It was such a fun and inviting experience and ALL of the nail techs are talented and very much capable of lacing you up and having you outchea “Stuntin Like Ya Daddy” and whatnot! But note this… you betta get ready to shovel out some cash, because it’s definitely gonna set you back a few duckies. My mani was roughly $90 after the tip so get ready to ball out Boo!

 

What to Wear:

I STRONGLY recommend that you opt for Cute & Comfy Style… it’s A LOT of walking and things are pretty fast paced (if you’re planning to get the full experience). I’d packed a few heels just in case I wanted to get a lil grown and a lil sexy…but, Bay-BEE! When I tell y’all those heels never made it to see the light of day (or the skyline of night, Lol!). I was all about my sneakers and I didn’t regret it one bit. As a matter of fact, the majority of the women in attendance were rocking cute sneakers or flat sandals (Unless they were performing or doing Meet & Greets or walking round looking like they got bad feet- Tuh!). I took a few pictures of other women in attendance, to give you all an idea of how people were dressed as well as a few of the outfits that I wore while there:

How to Plan:

PLAN EARLY!!! I suggest planning your lodging through a travel agent because the rooms are typically booked solid (by agents) the day after the festival ends. Since Essence gets pretty pricey, I recommend doing a payment plan. That’s exactly what I did and It was so awesome, you really don’t miss the money because you’re just making small payments (roughly $120/month). The lodging cost was roughly $1200 for three nights. Since I opted to have one (1) roommate, I only paid half of that. If you’re in need of an agent, you can check out the Essence Fest FB group… there are so many people in the group and I’m confident you’ll be able to find an agent that can assist you with securing lodging for next year.

Also of note, buy your tickets EARLY…The VIP experience can get even more expensive if you purchase the tickets at the daily rate vice the Bundle rate. They were $178.00 for all three days (and this included swag bags). However, they were almost $300 after the fact and the bundle tickets sell out FAST!

Same goes for your concert tickets! I paid $600 for my tickets because I’d waited so long… Next year, I will not play the waiting game trying to figure out who’s doing what… I’m buying my tickets super early and I’m getting floor seats. I opted out of floor seats this year because I was told that the floors seats weren’t as good… I can call BS on that now though as I was PISSED that I didn’t stick to my original plan. Lol!  Floor seats are ALWAYS a great idea (Periodt!).

Download the Essence Festival App ASAP. It makes planning so much easier! All of the information is located in one place, and it allows you to pre-plan and set notifications for the events that you wanna attend.

Also, arrive at least 1 day early if you want to get settled in, get the most out of the conference/festival AND have time to explore the city. This year, I got there the day of and it was not ideal as there wasn’t a lot of time to venture off from the Essence Festival Schedule because they have stuff happening all throughout the day and night up until late night (11pm). After that, everything’s closed with the exception of the French Quarter which is pretty much non-stop all night through the wee hours of the morning.

I’m likely going to do another post as we get closer to next years conference because there’s just so much to share.

I hope you have the opportunity to experience this event if you’ve never been, as it’s so worth the investment.

Until next time…

Note this, Darling:

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Wisdom comes from experience. Experience is often a result of lack of wisdom