will provide comfort to artists and fans alikeafter a tough week following Michael Jackson's death.
Singer Lionel Richie, a longtime friend of the pop superstar and festival headliner, says performing at Essence will give him and others a chanceto regroup.
"We'll celebrate his life and come together as a family down there," Richie said. "It's New Orleans. The spirit of what the music business is all about is there. It really is to me one of those places that's like visiting my foundation."
The festival, which began in1995 to celebrate the birthday of Essence Magazine, begins Friday andruns through Sunday. It will include a tribute to Jackson, as well asperformances by Beyonce, John Legend, Ne-Yo, Anita Baker and others.
Richie,60, collaborated with Jackson in 1985 and wrote what became one of thefastest-selling singles ever - "We Are the World" - a song produced toraise money for victims of the Ethiopian famine.
"I wanted him tobe able to enjoy his life and his success, and he was never really ableto do that," Richie said. "He just couldn't get there. For me, that was the tough part."
Richie said his performance Sunday will consistof favorites like "Zoom" and "Brick House," but he'll also sprinkle ina selection or two from "Just Go," his new CD.
"I know this audience," he said. "This is my audience. ... They want to hear as much old as I can play."
Essencealso will include a host of New Orleans acts, such as Troy "Trombone Shorty" Andrews, trumpeter Irvin Mayfield and the brass band Big Sam's Funky Nation.
New Orleans jazz singer Thais Clark is making her Essence debut Friday with two performances - one a salute to New Orleans blues singer Marva Wright, who is recovering from a stroke last month, and another with the Preservation Hall Jazz Band.
"I love Essence," Clark said. "It brings a certain energy to the city, the people and enthusiasm. I'm so excited to be a part of it this year."
Besides music, Essence has plenty to celebrate with the election of the country's first black president and the festival's 15th anniversary, said Michelle Ebanks, president of Essence Communications, Inc.
As in years past, seminars addressing challenges in the black community, such as underachieving schools and single-parent households, will be held during the day at the Morial Convention Center, and concerts are slated for evenings at the Louisiana Superdome.
On Friday, actor and comedian Steve Harvey will talk about marriage and actor turned activist Bill Cosby will discuss education a day later. Other speakers include Marvelyn Brown, a 24-year-old native of Tennessee who was diagnosed with HIV at 19, former magazine editor Monique Greenwood and Soledad O'Brien, the CNN anchor who reported on the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.
This year is shaping up to be a record crowd,despite the slumping economy and loss of two major sponsors, Ebankssaid. Essence is on track to break last year's record attendance of 270,000, she said.
Hotel occupancy is expected to be 80 to 90 percent, and could increase "if we have a lot of last minute decision-makers," said Mary Beth Romig, spokeswoman for the New Orleans Convention and Visitors Bureau.
