Your Favorite 'Empire' Star Is Making His ESSENCE Festival Performance Debut This July

It’s official: Jussie Smollett is bringing all of his many talents to the 2018 ESSENCE Festival in New Orleans this July.

ESSENCE Festival 2018 tickets are on sale now! For more info and the latest news, visit our Festival page HERE.

Announced earlier this week, the actor, singer and songwriter will take the stage to perform at Essence Fest for the first time ever this summer and he’s got plenty in store for his debut. Never one to disappoint whether he’s winning over viewers by the thousands as Jamal Lyon on Empire, or captivating music lovers in real life, Jussie is sure to make an unforgettable first impression at the country’s biggest Festival celebrating Black music and Black culture like no other.

The California native got his start as a child actor in the early 90s and later returned to acting in 2012, before landing his starring role on Empire in 2014. A musician both on and off screen, he co-wrote the singles “Keep Your Money,” “You’re So Beautiful” and “I Wanna Love You,” which were also performed on the show. In 2016, he landed a guest-starring role in the critically-acclaimed series, Underground.

Fans can look forward to Jussie performing a combination of the crowd favorites we all love from Empire, as well as tunes from his debut solo album, Sum of My Music, released in early March 2018.

Be sure to grab your tickets to see Jussie light up the stage on Saturday, July 7 along with over 40 more of music’s biggest names including Janet Jackson, The Roots, Mary J. Blige, Erykah Badu, Daniel Caesar, Jill Scott, Miguel, H.E.R., Fantasia, Xscape and many more at the 2018 ESSENCE Festival.

See you in NOLA!