We had a blast this year at the ’09 Essence Music Festival down in New Orleans. Ford Motor Company put together some great events & after parties, so check out what we got into!!!

First up, we attended the New Orleans Freedom’s Sisters luncheon on Thursday, July 2nd hosted by Entertainment Tonight correspondent Kevin Frazier. It was such an inspirational event filled with AMAZING women who are definitely giving back and helping out our community!

The honorees (pictured above) are as follows: Carol Bebelle, Cheryl Charles, Millie Charles, Leah Chase, Joia Crear-Perry, Pam Dashiel, Bernette J. Johnson, Edith Jones, Barbare Lacen-Keller, Ursula Markey, Ellen Lee, Beverly Statnton McKenna, Barbara Ellis Netter, Sue Smock, Janice Taylor, Vera Triplett, Tracie Washington, Vera Williams, Beverly Wright, and Loyce Wright.

There was also an eye opening speech by the legendary civil rights/woman’s rights speaker Dr. Dorothy Irene Height. Make sure to click here for more info about Freedom’s Sisters!

Pamela G. Alexander, Director, Community Development and Fund Operators, Ford Motor Company, Ford Motor Company designer Earl Lucas, and Lincoln and Mercury brands with Ford Motor Company, Crystal Worthem.

We also hit up the FORD lounge at the Convention Center and caught up with a few celebs. Pictured above are: actress, Sheryl Lee Ralph, singers John Legend and Ryan Leslie. We also spotted Brian McKnight, Salt N Pepa and Jazmine Sullivan arriving to the lounge. Peep those photos below.

Speaking of FORD cars, We got a chance to test ride the 2010 FORD FLEX and let’s just say it was a very spacey and smooth ride. Pictured above are: Concrete Loop owner/editor Angel Laws and radio personality Jawn Murray checking out the FLEX.

And what would the Essence Music Festival be without us checking out a few concerts while we were out there. Highlights were definitely performances by Beyonce, Maxwell (even though he came on late), and the talented John Legend! Make sure to visit the official Essence Music Festival page for more info on performers.

We also hit up a couple of after parties and got various exclusives. We posted about those recently, but check out the links below:

- EVENTS/PARTIES: IDRIS ELBA HOSTS ‘LINCOLN AFTER DARK‘ PARTY (link)
- CL EXCLUSIVE: SOLANGE ARRIVING TO HER SOUNDCHECK (link)
- CL EXCLUSIVE: EVA MARCILLE SIGNING AUTOGRAPHS @ EMF (link)
- GUESS WHO: AT THE SUPER DOME IN NEW ORLEANS (link)
- CL EXCLUSIVE: SOLANGE, ESTELLE, & LALA PARTY IN NEW ORLEANS (link)

- TAJ WASHINGTON PHOTOGRAPHY (link)
- FORD MOTOR COMPANY (link)
- THE CHAMBER GROUP (link)