Janet Jackson made striking sartorial choices mixing classic and experimental pieces over the weekend in New Orleans during Essence Festival, celebrating Black culture and success.
To attend the event’s Be Bold dinner party on Friday, the 56-year-old pop icon wore a fitted long-sleeved houndstooth turtleneck dress by Norma Kamali. The ankle-length dress, which channeled vintage style, featured a slight flutter hem that showed off the star’s pair of moon shoe-like white platform sneakers. Jackson donned large silver hoop earrings, further accessorizing with chunky clear and black acrylic bracelets.
The songstress wore her voluminous long curly hair in a half-up, half-down style with braided accents throughout. The pulled-back style showed off Jackson’s makeup, which featured glittering silver shimmer eye shadow, dramatic lashes and a nude glossed lip.
At the dinner, which was thrown in Jackson’s honor, Essence, Coca-Cola, AT&T and Propel Center made a joint donation of $100,000 to Jackson’s Rhythm Nation Scholarship Fund. The scholarship supports Black students who are pursuing a degree in communications, fine arts, journalism, mass communications, mass media arts, music, photography, TV production, or visual arts at a historically Black university.
The following day, Jackson took the concert stage at Essence Festival wearing a sparkling long-sleeved fitted black jumpsuit by The Blonds with dramatic shoulder pads, a corseted waist and metal paneled accents on the arms and shoulders. The star wore black knee-high glitter boots with a modest block heel with the outfit, giving her a solid footing for dancing. Jackson wore her hair in the same half-up, half-down style as the night before, centering her makeup look around a light cut crease and soaring lashes.
Essence Festival of Culture celebrates Black excellence and entertainment, intertwining panels covering career advancement, wellness and tech with musical and comedy performances. Headliners include Jackson, Nicki Minaj, Kevin Hart and New Edition. The festival also highlights Black-owned businesses, spotlighting Black food vendors and artisans. Featuring the theme “It’s the Black Joy for Me,” the four-day annual festival began June 30 and ran through July 3 this year.