Diggy Simmons, the OMG Girlz and the Roots of Music Marching Crusaders will play a New and Next Concert on Thursday, July 5—the new first day of the Essence Music Festival. The day will have a strong youth orientation, including a day-long youth empowerment focus at the Morial Convention Center, and it comes in addition to the young audience-focused free “Block Party” hosted by Doug E. Fresh in Champions Square, which will feature MC Lyte and Kourtney Heart on Friday, Dee-1 on Saturday, and Spinderella and F. Stokes on Sunday.

“The Essence Music Festival has always been more than just music,” says Michelle Ebanks, the President of Essence Communications Inc. “It’s a forum to transform lives by the power of our voice to celebrate our community through music, entertainment and empowerment. We are deepening our youth empowerment day to the festival to focus on the matters that are most critical to our next generation, and we are celebrating their voice with our first-ever youth empowerment concert at the Superdome.”

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