Although Essence Music Festival 2016 has come to a close, an eventful and exciting day three came first. No matter if great music is your thing or you’d rather relax on a boat cruise down the mighty Mississippi river, there was a little something for everyone to wrap up the weekend.

VIP Pon De River Boat Party

Sunday afternoon for the Blavity team meant kicking back on a boat cruise aboard the Creole Queen. The all-white dress code made for some fresh outfit combinations. The buffet, DJ and open bar were the perfect combination to get the party going. The mini getaway allowed us to explore New Orleans in a totally new and exciting way, and we were back at the dock with plenty of time to get ready for the concert Sunday night.

The final concert was lit.

Although the mainstage was rocking, artists such as Dej Loaf, Kehlani, Leon Bridges, BJ The Chicago Kid, Chloe x Halle and more performed their hits at the superlounges. After a Prince tribute, Andra Day opened the mainstage and held everyone’s attention with her gripping vocals. On top of her hit “Rise Up,” she and her band performed their own spin on Queen’s “I Want it All.”

Shortly after, Ciara came out full force. She performed a medley of her older singles and some new songs, hitting some killer dance moves along the way.

.@ciara is on FIRE. 🔥 #EssenceFest pic.twitter.com/A09P6cr8Gl

— Essence Magazine (@essencemag) July 4, 2016

Kendrick Lamar was up next, and his ability to get a crowd hype was apparent from the second he took the stage. The overall message of his set was, unsurprisingly, “We gon’ be alright.”

“Every time I’m in the streets I hear… ” @kendricklamar #essencefest pic.twitter.com/hvH2G5lCVV

— ESSENCE Festival (@essencefest) July 4, 2016

The final headliner of the night was the one and only Puff Daddy and the Family. Puff brought out Mase, 112, Faith Evans, French Montana, and Fabolous even made a brief appearance.

Get your hands up! @faithevans #essencefest pic.twitter.com/MtipjjHjrk

— ESSENCE Festival (@essencefest) July 4, 2016

Werk! Werk! Werk! Werk! @iamdiddy @frenchmontana #essencefest pic.twitter.com/5DwupOfjXU

— ESSENCE Festival (@essencefest) July 4, 2016

The group sounded great, and everyone got on their feet when classics such as “Mo’ Money, Mo’ Problems” and “I Need a Girl, Pt. 2” came on.

Essence Music Festival 2016 was everything we could have hoped for and more. Will we see you in New Orleans this time next year?

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