Essence Festival celebrates 50 years of hip-hop this year, and Juvenile wondered why his name wasn’t on the original line-up.
After blowing up the initial line-up for Essence Fest, Juvenile proudly announces that they have been included in this year’s roster of live performances. The cash money wrapper is Tweet We checked his set on Wednesday, June 7th.
“Hip Hop 50 without Juvie? No chance. June 30th, NOLA we live!” the boy tweeted.
Hip-hop 50 without Juvie? Not a chance. June 30th, NOLA We Live! #essencefest #essencefest 2023 #EFOC2023
Tickets can be purchased at https://t.co/8tlIbi9StE pic.twitter.com/d2GaeGgX2X
— JUVENILE (@juviethegreat) June 7, 2023
The announcement comes a week after Juvie announced the line-up for the first Essence Festival of Culture. The line-up included a number of A-list performers, but only one was from New Orleans.
“How does Essence keep hip-hop going on in New Orleans for 50 years without me???” Juvenile wrote in a since-deleted tweet. “Donna join his fest on July 2nd with my live band + Manny Fresh + Rebirth and more.”
Mia X was the only New Orleans native on the original bill. Headliners include Ms. Lauryn Hill, Missy Elliott, Megan Thee Stallion, Big Daddy Kane, Doug E. Fresh, EPMD, Gucci Mane, Big Boi, Jermaine Dupri, KRS-One, more. There is a West Coast set featuring Ice Cube, E-40, Ice T and more.
There’s also a ‘South Got Something to Say’ set featuring Atlanta celebrities like Lil Jon, Jermaine Dupri and Gucci Mane. A fan brought this up to Juvie last week, and he shamed the festival by acknowledging the South but not those from the city where the festival is held each year.
“They have a ‘South has something to say’ corner that brings together all of the Atl rappers,” a fan wrote.
“They didn’t understand the mandate,” Juve replied.
Essence took to Instagram to address the issue, announcing that Juvenile will join the hit show, as reported by Okay Player.
“As we prepared to celebrate the 50th anniversary of hip-hop culturally at this year’s festival, we planned around artists from New Orleans and Louisiana and the integration of our musical heritage across several experiences.” they write.
“Whether it’s a celebration of hip-hop femcy like the previously announced New Orleans native Mia X, or a special surprise performance by a local hip-hop artist you can’t miss along with Crescent City’s music line, I’m Hip-hop artist Juvenile will be representing the City of New Orleans and the state of Louisiana at our Family Day celebration.”
The Essence Festival of Culture looks to have a jam-packed line-up that will make the cultural world talk about it in 2023.
