Jazmine Sullivan has made the difficult decision to cancel her performance at AFROPUNK due to the passing of her mother Pamela. She passed away in July at the age of 64. This comes nearly four years after she was diagnosed with breast cancer.
In a post on August 16, the Philly native revealed that she will no longer be headlining AFROPUNK Brooklyn 2023. Sullivan expressed her anticipation of sharing the stage with her fans at both AFROPUNK Brooklyn, but due to the weight of grief, she won’t be able to perform this year. “Grief has its own rhythm and it’s essential to honor our emotions and moments of mourning,” she wrote in a post.
Although she won’t be present at AFROPUNK this time, she expressed excitement about passing the torch to the incredibly talented Teyana Taylor, describing her as a force of nature who will undoubtedly bring her own magic to the stage.”I can’t think of anyone better to take my place at AFROPUNK than Teyana,” she continued.
Originally scheduled to make her headlining debut at the two-day AFROPUNK event on August 26-27, the Heaux Tales artist was set to be joined by other artists like Flying Lotus, Joey Bada$$, Vince Staples, Toby Nwigwe, Baby Tate, Durand Bernarr, Madison McFerrin, and more.
The organizers of AFROPUNK also released a statement, expressing their support and sending love to Sullivan during this difficult time. They acknowledged that unforeseen circumstances have led to the change in plans and that they stand by her as she navigates through this challenging moment. Jazmine’s artistry and presence have always been a source of inspiration for the AFROPUNK community.