Jasmine McClain

There are certain moments you don’t just attend, you feel them. That’s exactly what the  ESSENCE Festival of Culture gave us last year. From the concert in the Superdome to the panel conversations, the festival wasn’t just an event; it was a living, breathing moment of Black culture, joy, and evolution. Image Credit: @ESSENCE So as anticipation builds for the 2026 return to New Orleans, this year already feels different. And that shift begins with one name: Teyana Taylor.

Recently Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. celebrated Founders Day on January 13, and Alaina Hoskins embodies what it means to live the sorority’s commitment to service, scholarship, and sisterhood at every stage of life. At 56, Hoskins is a mother, a college senior at the University of the District of Columbia, author, mentor, and founder of a luxury fragrance house. Her story is not one of overnight success, but of divine timing.

There are moments in culture when personal destiny and collective history collide, and for Alexis Onestas, that moment unfolded live on stage at Black Ambition. In front of a packed audience of Black and Hispanic innovators at Pharrell Williams’ Black Ambition event, Onestas made an announcement that stunned the room: Steve Stoute’s seminal book, The Tanning of America, is officially being translated into French, opening access to more than 300 million Francophone readers worldwide.