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Myth vs. Fact: 2019 Essence Festival Edition

Do hotels really sell out early? Should you really wait to buy concert tickets? We're debunking all the common Essence Fest myths!

“Is it REALLY necessary to book your hotel that early?” “ESSENCE Festival is really just a weekend of concerts?” “I heard you should wait to buy concert tickets until after they announce the lineup…” Sound familiar? Of course it does! With all the excitement around our 25th-year Festival celebration coming up in 2019, it’s easy to get confused about which information is true and which isn’t. But not to worry—today, we’re doing a little fact checking to debunk some of the most common ESSENCE Festival myths. Click HERE to get tickets for ESSENCE Festival 2019, celebrating 25 years of moving the culture forward! Scroll through to get the whole truth and nothing but the truth, and then be sure to visit our official ESSENCE Festival website for more information on how to start planning your trip. See you in NOLA!

MYTH: You should wait until the lineup is announced to get your tickets

FACT: Taking advantage of early-bird ticket sales is one of the best decisions you can make when planning your trip to ESSENCE Festival. Plus, we’re celebrating 25 years of ESSENCE Festival this year, so trust us, this year’s concert lineup will be one for the books!

Bennett Raglin/Getty Images

MYTH: Booking your travel at the last minute for ESSENCE Festival is no big deal

FACT: ESSENCE Festival brought over 510,000 people to the city of New Orleans last year, so you’ll definitely want to get a head start on solidifying your travel plans. Hotels began selling out and filling up as early as January of last year and as we all know, flight prices getting cheaper the closer you get to an event is not a thing.

MYTH: Official ESSENCE Festival events only happen at the Convention Center or the Superdome

FACT: Official ESSENCE Festival weekend events happen all over the city of New Orleans, and this year, we’ll have more amazing experiences than ever before happening right at your fingertips from the Convention Center to the Superdome and everywhere in between.

MYTH: ESSENCE Festival is more for my mom and my aunts than me and my friends

FACT: If you love all things Black culture, then ESSENCE Festival is for YOU! Whether you’re 22 or 52, the Festival weekend is jam-packed with an endless number of fun activities and experiences in every area from music, to film, to television, to beauty, to fashion, to career, to health and wellness that will leave you with everlasting memories.

@mylinggal Instagram

MYTH: ESSENCE Festival is all about the music

FACT: While there’s certainly nothing quite like our ESSENCE Festival weekend nightly concert series, there’s SO much more to the Festival than just the music and performances. Our daytime activities will make you feel like you have an all-access pass to a dozen mini festivals celebrating Black beauty, Black fashion, Black music, Black businesses, Black cuisine, Black film, Black television, Black communities and so much more — all at once!

Ryan Theriot/Getty Images for 20th Century Fox Pictures

MYTH: ESSENCE Festival is pretty much like every other Festival

FACT: Au, contraire! ESSENCE Festival is actually unlike ANY other Festival you’ve ever been to. From the music, to the food, to the fashion, to the up-close interactions with your favorite celebs, to the country’s largest marketplace of Black-owned vendors in one spot….not to toot our own horn but, we’re something like the cream of the Festival crop!

MYTH: ESSENCE Festival is only for women

FACT: We most definitely have a blast celebrating all things amazing about Black women during ESSENCE Festival weekend, but there’s also plenty for guys to do and this year, there will be more than ever. So whether you’re thinking of making it a guys trip or just surprising your significant other with a trip they’ll never forget, fellas, come on down!!

Paras Griffin/Getty Images

MYTH: You need separate tickets to attend the concerts happening in the Superlounges at the Superdome

FACT: Your ESSENCE Festival concert ticket actually grants you access to the entire Superdome for the night. That means you can see who’s hitting the mainstage AND sneak away to get a little closer to the artists you love via the intimate performances in the Superlounge at no extra charge. In other words, 1 ticket package = 5 stages each night = over 50 of the biggest names in music!

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MYTH: If you’ve been to one ESSENCE Fest, you’ve been to them all

FACT: Every year, ESSENCE Festival gets bigger and better with more experiences to keep the party going all weekend long. This year, we’re pulling out all the stops for our 25-year celebration, so get ready!

Scott Threlkeld

MYTH: ESSENCE Festival can’t possibly get anymore amazing than it already is

FACT: Don’t believe us? Just watch 🙂

MYTH: I won’t miss any important info about ESSENCE Festival if I’m not checking the official website

FACT: With all that we’ve got planned for 2019, you’ll want to bookmark the ESSENCE Festival website and keep it locked so you can be the first to know about all the official updates that are just around the corner.

Marianna Massey/Getty Images

Essence Festival

@miss_voltaire Instagram

MYTH: I can only have fun at ESSENCE Festival if I’m with my friends

FACT: There’s no denying that ESSENCE Festival is the ultimate girls trip for you and your best girlfriends, but it’s also a great summer trip to take with bae or the perfect way to make lifelong memories with the women in your family.

MYTH: But I can get authentic NOLA food anywhere!

FACT: Authentic New Orleans cuisine can ONLY come straight from the Big Easy and what better way to satisfy your taste buds than to take your pick of hundreds of delicious NOLA eats all at once in the Convention Center during ESSENCE Festival weekend?!