NOW PLAYING: Evening Concerts Weekend 1 (You do not want to miss the stunning career-statement performance by Jazmine Sullivan)
Wi-Fi cables secured? Screens cleaned? Speakers charged? Then you’re all set for the 2021 Essence Festival of Culture experience, which returns for two weekends: June 25-27 and July 1-4.
We’re turned up the heat at this year’s virtual experience, featuring many inspiring talks, performances by Jazmine Sullivan, Davido, Ne-Yo, DJ Khaled, Busta Rhymes, Fat Joe, Tank and more. We also partnered with Verzuz for an Essence Festival edition battle with two music giants, Bobby Brown and Keith Sweat.
Here is the full program schedule of what went down this year.
Beauty Carnival: Boundless Beauty
Friday: June 25 & July 2
Enjoy presentations from industry insiders and top brands on makeup, skin, body and hair care that provide a fresh perspective on caring for and embracing the hair and skin you’re in. Speakers include Adrienne Houghton, Melyssa Ford, Claudia Jordan, LisaRaye, Supacent, Miss Lawrence, Big Freedia, Demetria Lucas, India.Arie, Tina Knowles and more.
Watch Beauty Carnival: Boundless Beauty Weekend 1
Watch Beauty Carnival: Boundless Beauty Weekend 2
PITCH PLEASE!
Presented by Pull Up For Change + New Voices
Friday: June 25 & July 2
Tune in for PITCH PLEASE!, powered by Pull Up for Change’s Impact Fund and New Voices Foundation to watch up-and-coming Black women-owned beauty brands make their pitch to change the beauty business game! During this pitch competition, eight Black women founders will compete for cash prizes ranging from $10,000 to $100,000 plus valuable business coaching to launch & execute, or grow & scale their beautiful entrepreneurial dreams.
Enjoy presentations from industry insiders and top brands on makeup, skin, body and hair care that provide a fresh perspective on caring for and embracing the hair and skin you’re in. Speakers include Adrienne Houghton, Melyssa Ford, Claudia Jordan, LisaRaye, Supacent, Miss Lawrence, Big Freedia, Demetria Lucas, India.Arie, Tina Knowles and more.
Watch Pitch Please Weekend 1 (June 25)
Watch Pitch Please Weekend 2 (July 2)
After Dark™
Friday: June 25 & July 2
After the party it’s the after party. Relive our Friday night music sets at the ultimate online kick-back.
Watch After Dark Weekend 1 (June 26)
Featuring Raiche, MuMu Fresh, Taylor Parx and Tiana Major
Watch After Dark Weekend 2 (July 2)
Featuring Mackenzie Thomas, Rapsody and Ladies of the ROC
Wealth & Power: Impacting & Informing
Saturday: June 26 & July 3
Discover how to be an agent of change during this virtual town hall. Topics include tools for investing, business, entrepreneurship, policy, voting and more. Speakers include June Ambrose, Jemele Hill, Tamika Mallory, New Orleans Mayor Latoya Cantrell, Angela Yee, D-Nice and others. In addition, watch a special message from President Joe Biden and a special segment featuring our Black Female Mayors.
Watch the full stream of Wealth and Power (Weekend 2)
Watch the full stream of Wealth & Power (Weekend 1)
Entertainment All Access™
Saturday: June 26 & July 3
Catch your Hollywood faves in Q&As and be the first to watch exclusive sneak peeks of the hottest upcoming releases! With appearances by Gina Torres, Lil Rel, Yvonne Orji, Yandy Smith, Mary J. Blige and more.
Watch the full stream of Entertainment All Access (Weekend 2)
Watch the full stream of Entertainment All Access (Weekend 1)
Evening Concerts: Saturday Night Vibes
Saturday: June 26 & July 3
Get into this year’s Saturday Night Vibes with back-to-back weekends of our legendary evening concert series with a must-see lineup you don’t want to miss.
Watch Evening Concert Series Week 1
Featuring a stunning headliner performance by Jazmine Sullivan along with stage moments from Lucky Daye, Tank, Kes and more!
Watch Evening Concert Series Week 2
A night of hip hop and R&B with performances by DJ Khaled & Friends—featuring Fat Joe, Busta Rhymes, Wale and Rae Sremmurd—plus Davido, Ne-Yo, Amerie, Case and Carl Thomas.
Wellness House™
Sunday: June 27 & July 4
From The Inside Out
A multi-faceted collective of self-care resources for you! Through our curated sessions, you will walk away equipped with the resources to prioritize your nutrition, spirit, relationships, and more! From unlearning generational toxic habits to how to care for your body from the inside out.
Watch Wellness House Weekend 1 (June 27)
Watch Wellness House Weekend 2 (July 4)
Get Lifted™ Gospel Sunday Celebration:
Sunday: June 27 & July 4
We cap off each weekend by getting our spirits lifted as the annual all-star Gospel tribute hits your screen for 2 Sundays back to back! Tune in for powerful words of praise by your favorite spiritual leaders and music by your favorite gospel artist.
Watch Get Lifted™ Gospel Sunday Celebration Weekend 1 (June 27)
Watch Get Lifted™ Gospel Sunday Celebration Weekend 1 (July 4)
Dear Black Men
Thursday: July 1
ESSENCE Studios presents Dear Black Men—an all-male summit that salutes the contributions of our brothers who speak vulnerably about their respective experiences as family men, community advocates and leaders of this generation.
Watch the full stream of Dear Black Men
ESSENCE x Verzuz
Get ready to watch none other than Bobby Brown and Keith Sweat go hit-for-hit in what’s sure to be an epic showdown filled with a host of the R&B classics we love.
Editor's note: This article was updated on July 5, 2021