Essence Festival Faces Frustration

The 2025 Essence Festival of Culture had us excited, hydrated, and ready to get our lives—but some key parts of this year didn’t go quite as expected, and organizers responded to critical comments from attendees.

The Return of the Super Lounges… With a Price Tag?

Let’s start with these “Super Lounges” or as some goers said, “Super Expensive Lounges.” Traditionally, these intimate performance spaces were a crowd favorite. You could catch an up-and-coming artist rock the stage and feel like you just discovered the next big thing… for free. But this year? Essence switched things up with VVIP tickets just to get inside.

Social media went OFF, accusing Essence of trying to capitalize on something that used to be for the people, by the people. Essence responded, writing on Instagram:

“Due to ongoing renovations at the Caesars Superdome, many of the original Superlounge spaces were no longer available. Rather than scale back, we reintroduced Superlounge as a premium lounge experience.”

Do we appreciate the transparency and accountability? Absolutely. But luxury pricing for what used to be a free vibe was asking a lot, especially in THIS economy.

Target? Not Right Now…

Another head-scratcher? Target showing face. Normally, we’d be first in line for their activations (and we do mean line-wrapped-around-the-convention-center energy), but after that whole boycott, folks were side-eyeing their presence HARD.

ICYMI: Target caught major heat after scaling back their Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives. That move didn’t just flop PR-wise it cut deep in the community that built them up. So, attendees didn’t expect Essence to roll out the red carpet for the retailer.

Turns out, the reason was simple: contractual agreement. In other words, it might’ve taken a legal battle for Essence to refuse funds that the organizers likely already invested in the event.

Check out Essence Fest’s response to delays that left Lauryn Hill performing until 4 am (even though she was ready on time) after the flip!

The Opening Night Line-Up Went From Great To Running Super Late

Then we get to the Friday night concert at the Superdome, aka the “Essence After Dark: The Sleep Deprivation Edition.” Baby, when we say late, we mean LATE-late. Like we-almost-missed-Saturday late. Concertgoers said the show didn’t really get rolling until an hour or two behind schedule, which is wild considering the stacked lineup.

We’re talking: Psyrin, Lucky Daye, Coco Jones, GloRilla, The Isley Brothers, Babyface, Maxwell, and Ms. Lauryn Hill. That’s a whole Tiny Desk tour in one night—so yes, timing was crucial.

Around midnight, Babyface straight-up told the crowd he was “tired as hell.” But before y’all assume Lauryn Hill was the culprit (because, let’s be real, the legend has a history), plot twist: this time it wasn’t her fault.

Lauryn didn’t hit the stage until 2 A.M., and didn’t wrap up until nearly 4 A.M. By then, the dome was looking half-empty, but shoutout to the real ones who stayed. Because listen—seeing Lauryn live is a spiritual experience, even if you’re running on Red Bull and prayer.

According to NOLA.com, this was one of the latest shows in Essence Fest’s 31-year history. So yes, it was historic… but not exactly in the way we’d hoped.

Organizers responded to the headlines to set the record straight and clear Lauryn’s name on Instagram: “The delay? Not hers. We’ll take that.”

“Family is family and around here we protect our own no matter what the PEOPLE have to say.

Let’s be very clear— WE don’t play about Ms. Lauryn Hill.

Not for clicks. Not for headlines.

She arrived on schedule, stepped on that stage, and delivered the kind of performance only a legend can.

The delay? Not hers. We will take that.
The moment? One for the books.
The legacy? Still unmatched

Put some respect on her name.
Keep the takes, but keep her out of them.

All love and deep profound admiration for Ms. Lauryn Hill,” the statement said.

Give Grace, But Keep It Real

Look, we get it. Essence has been doing this for 30+ years, and they’ve brought so much joy, connection, and Black excellence to New Orleans. Every year won’t be flawless. Every decision won’t land. However, many still came, slayed, and left inspired.

Despite a challenging year, Essence Fest has everyone talking. From satisfied fans to disappointed devotees and everyone in between, the leaders’ responses show that they’re listening. Now, we’re eager to see how the 2026 event follows the feedback.

We’re still rooting for everybody Black—and for Essence to remain the cultural reset we all know and love.

Have you ever attended Essence Fest? Were you there this year? Sound off in the comments—let’s talk about it.

The post Mea Culpa For The Culture: Essence Fest Responds To Backlash For 2025 Changes & Concert Delays appeared first on Bossip.