NEW ORLEANS, LA (Top40 Charts/ ESSENCE MUSIC FESTIVAL) - 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 join
Beyonce as the ESSENCE MUSIC FESTIVAL celebrates its 15th Anniversary this July 3, 4 and 5 in New Orleans. The critically acclaimed annual celebration of music and empowerment has also announced an updated list of seminars which will include appearances from Bill Cosby, Donna Brazile, Tom Joyner, Hill Harper and Sheryl Lee Ralph, among others.
The 2009 ESSENCE MUSIC FESTIVAL line-up (as of January 29) is as follows: Beyonce, Maxwell, Anita Baker, Al Green, John Legend, Solange, Robin Thicke, Salt-N-Pepa, Sierra Leone Refugee All Stars, Ne-Yo, En Vogue, Teena Marie, 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. Stay tuned for more line-up additions and the day-by-day performance schedules in the months leading up to the festival.
The annual weekend of entertainment and empowerment-hailed by USA TODAY (7-7-08) as having "achieved a balance of old-school homage and cutting-edge innovation at the Superdome"-will once again dazzle and uplift with an unprecedented three days of cultural celebrations over the festive Fourth of July holiday weekend. As in past years, musical performances are slated for the New Orleans Superdome and Empowerment Seminars will take place at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center.
"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, Essence Communications Inc. "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."
Beyond the aforementioned musical performances, the ESSENCE MUSIC FESTIVAL sets itself apart from other music events around the world by including three full days of empowerment seminars. The empowerment seminars-which are free of charge-are open to the public on a first-come, first-served basis.
