NEW ORLEANS — The City of New Orleans officially welcomed thousands of people to the Big Easy on Thursday for the Essence Festival of Culture.
Essence CEO Caroline Wanga said Thursday during a news conference at Gallier Hall to kick off the event, which runs through the Fourth of July holiday weekend, that the celebration has been around for three decades—no easy feat.
“Part of why that happens is because of where we are — the cultural mecca called New Orleans," Wanga said.
The magazine unveiled four new covers for its July and August issues, commemorating the festival and its relationship with the city. Its cover story, “Dear New Orleans,” is a love letter to the city's people, places, and spaces, company executives said.
Mayor LaToya Cantrell thanked Essence for the longstanding partnership, which has had a more than $300 million economic impact on the city and state and given New Orleans global recognition.
“This is our moment to love one another," she said. “Our time to come together to ensure and understand that we are unapologetically Black and we deserve to be loved on and supported.”
Wanga said New Orleans is the true “headliner” for the festival, which offers free daily workshops in the convention center and ticketed nightly concerts with big-name artists at the Superdome.
Wanga and Cantrell said the event’s contract with the city runs through 2026, and there are no plans to end the magazine's relationship.