Coca-Cola brought a weekend of celebrity speakers; here Steve Harvey shares relationship wisdom with a full audience at the Coke booth.
Festival-goers waited anxiously as Chef Huda served up healthy meals to compliment ice cold Coca-Cola.
Kool Moe Dee and a full lineup of hip-hop legends taught us a few things in the Art of Hip Hop Superlounge sponsored by Coca-Cola.
McDonald’s 365 Black Awards honored community trailblazers, featured celebrities and live performances all hosted by Keke Palmer and Terrence J.
R&B group, 112, performed hits as fans sang along during the McDonald’s Sweet Chill Concert Series.
Ford’s Ride-N-Drive returned giving Festival-goers a chance to test drive their favorite Ford vehicles like the Mustang.
Saturday’s main stage headliner, Usher, brought his charming good looks by the Ford booth for a chat in the Sirius XM lounge.
Celebrity couple David and Tamela Mann sit down with TV and film stars Golden Brooks, Paula Jai Parker and Lisa Wu to discuss the power of “girlfriend time” during Walmart’s “Make Room For Happy” panel.
Director of Marketing for Walmart stores, Sharonda L. Britton along with Mainstage host, Nephew Tommy spotlight 6 HBCU summer interns.
Verizon’s booth played host to a star studded weekend! This 1-on-1 conversation with Wale in gave fans an up close experience with the super lounge performer.
Verizon customers were invited to an exclusive Superdome hospitality suite that featured convenient charging stations.
Reality star and friend of My Black Is Beautiful, Demetria Lucas, got glammed up for a day of Festival activities.
Beauty Maven Angela Simmons stops by the My Black Is Beautiful booth for touch-ups. Catch CoverGirl’s full beauty maven series on ESSENCE.com!
State Farm encouraged onlookers to Get in the Groove with local dance troupes battling it out on the dance floor.
State Farm expanded its reach to the Quad where the Money Machine gave Festival-goers a few lessons on fast cash.
Samsung’s #GALAXYLIFE Truck hit the streets of New Orleans offering Samsung device owners chances at sweet prizes; here one lucky winner snags concert tickets!
Nephew Tommy takes a Samsung S6 Edge selfie with eight Mary J. Blige super fans. They received seats on stage during Mary’s performance, a meet and greet and an exclusive prize pack.
Cast members of Fox’s TV series Empire heated up the Hot Right Now Day Party with a surprise performance of hits from the show.
CoverGirl and Walmart collaborated for a beautiful experience at the Pop of Color Day Party.
The toughest part about ESSENCE Eats? Choosing which food vendor to chow down with first! What’s easy? Knowing Bounty has you covered.
ESSENCE and Walmart collaborated to bring a Day of Service which kicked off the weekend with community volunteers working to give back to local schools 10 years after the devastating effects of Hurricane Katrina. Classrooms were cleaned, halls were painted and trees were planted to prepare for a beautiful school year. Afterwards, volunteers were treated to free Health & Wellness Fair.
Career Connections Powered by the National Urban League provided a space where Festival-goers received opportunities to sharpen their interview skills, get schooled by industry professionals, take headshots. Verizon got interactive with the crowd as they chatted with potential candidates; other sponsors included Code2040, HCA and Time Inc.
Empower U returned to the Festival as the destination for all workshops on Healthy Living, Love & Relationships, Money & Power, and Style & Beauty. Engaging panels and interviews got attendees close to the experts in comfortable classroom setting. Participating sponsors included Alabama Power, Colgate, GE, State Farm and US Mint.
Entertainment All Access, the Festival’s destination for exclusive film and televisions screenings, cast talk backs, celebrity interviews and meet and greets, attracted fans of all ages. Sponsors included: Bentonville Film Festival, FOX, Universal Pictures and WGN America.
Festival-goers got a chance to embrace their happy place in the all new ESSENCE Food Truck experience sponsored by Coca-Cola.
The all new ESSENCE Quad was the Festival’s destination dedicated to live, interactive experiences tied to all things Empower U. Sponsors included: Colgate, National Domestic Violence Hotline, State Farm, US Mint, and Walmart.
