Frankie Beverly Takes His Final Bow At ESSENCE Festival Of Culture
After kicking off the ESSENCE Festival in 1995 and headlining Sunday night for decades, Frankie Beverly was given a fond farewell in a star-studded tribute
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – JULY 07: Frankie Beverly (C) receives a gift onstage during Day 3 of the 2024 ESSENCE Festival of Culture presented by Coca-Cola at Caesars Superdome on July 07, 2024 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Aaron J. Thornton/Getty Images for ESSENCE)
Frankie Beverly has been a staple of the ESSENCE Festival of Culture since we staged our first concert in 1995. The legendary crooner served as our Sunday night closer, with his all-white and his classic hits, for the first fifteen years of the festival, and has been a frequent Sunday headliner for the next fifteen years thereafter.
As kismet would have it, Beverly’s farewell to stage performance landed the same year as our 30th anniversary, presenting the perfect opportunity for us to properly present the man who has meant so much more than linen suits and electric slides with the flowers he deserves.
Beverly was lauded in a tribute curated by Bryan-Michael Cox on the last night of the 2024 ESSENCE Festival of Culture, with appearances from Serayah, Lil Mo, Doug E. Fresh, Anthony Hamilton, Bilal, Luke James, and the new lead singer of Maze, 11-time Grammy-winner Tony Lindsay.
Hits like “We Are One,” “Joy and Pain,” and the obligatory “Before I Let Go” were performed in his honor, before Beverly was presented with a plaque, regards, and a rollicking standing ovation from the multi-generational crowd thanking him for the decades of “Happy Feelings” he’s delivered from center stage.
Take a look at some of the tribute highlights below:
Doug E. Fresh
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – JULY 07: Doug E. Fresh performs onstage during Day 3 of the 2024 ESSENCE Festival of Culture presented by Coca-Cola at Caesars Superdome on July 07, 2024 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Josh Brasted/Getty Images for ESSENCE)
Anthony Hamilton
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – JULY 07: Anthony Hamilton performs onstage during Day 3 of the 2024 ESSENCE Festival of Culture presented by Coca-Cola at Caesars Superdome on July 07, 2024 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Bennett Raglin/Getty Images for ESSENCE)
Serayah
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – JULY 07: Serayah performs onstage during Day 3 of the 2024 ESSENCE Festival of Culture presented by Coca-Cola at Caesars Superdome on July 07, 2024 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Bennett Raglin/Getty Images for ESSENCE)
Luke James
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – JULY 07: Luke James performs onstage during Day 3 of the 2024 ESSENCE Festival of Culture presented by Coca-Cola at Caesars Superdome on July 07, 2024 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Bennett Raglin/Getty Images for ESSENCE)
Bilal
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – JULY 07: Bilal performs onstage during Day 3 of the 2024 ESSENCE Festival of Culture presented by Coca-Cola at Caesars Superdome on July 07, 2024 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Bennett Raglin/Getty Images for ESSENCE)
Lil Mo
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – JULY 07: Lil Mo performs onstage during Day 3 of the 2024 ESSENCE Festival of Culture presented by Coca-Cola at Caesars Superdome on July 07, 2024 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Bennett Raglin/Getty Images for ESSENCE)
Tony Lindsay
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – JULY 07: Tony Lindsay performs onstage during Day 3 of the 2024 ESSENCE Festival of Culture presented by Coca-Cola at Caesars Superdome on July 07, 2024 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Bennett Raglin/Getty Images for ESSENCE)
Frankie Beverly
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – JULY 07: Frankie Beverly receives a gift onstage during Day 3 of the 2024 ESSENCE Festival of Culture presented by Coca-Cola at Caesars Superdome on July 07, 2024 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Aaron J. Thornton/Getty Images for ESSENCE)
