Full of Black kings and queens, the Harlem Festival of Culture is looking like the place to be this summer.
The Harlem Cultural Festival was first held in 1969 at the Mount Morris park in Harlem. It was a series of music concerts that celebrated Black pride, music, and culture. The Harlem Festival of Culture is in honor of that very festival, and brings the people of New York City together to celebrate the same thing. They’ve finally announced their lineup for July 28th-30th, and we’re excited to be there.
Reasons to Be There
First of all, Teyana Taylor, Coco Jones, Muni Long, Remy Ma, and more are giving Black female excellence. The female presence in this lineup is awesome and definitely a huge reason to be there.
Teyana Taylor, who announced in late 2020 that she was stepping back from the music industry, is headlining. Her last album, The Album, debuted number eight on the US Billboard 200 chart. In her announcement of stepping down, she explained that she was feeling “undervalued” by her record labels. She is now ready to be taken seriously as an actress, according to Elle. She recently starred in the movie A Thousand and One as a mother who kidnaps a boy from the foster care system. Teyana making an appearance at this festival to perform her amazing music is something not to miss.
Coco Jones, whose recent song “ICU” debuted on the Hot 100, is also making an appearance. Rising to fame through the Disney movie Let It Shine, Coco is finally launching her music career. Her soulful R&B sound is a vibe. According to her website, she’s “diary-honest,” which makes her music even more real. Additionally, she’s starring in the reimagined version of the sitcom Prince of Bel-Air, Bel-Air, as Hilary Banks.
To add on to the amazingness of this lineup, one of the queens of rap, Remy Ma, is also making an appearance. She rose to fame as a member of Fat Joe’s group; Fat Joe will also be making an appearance at the Harlem Festival of Culture. Both of them growing up in the Bronx gives them that New York City realness. They’re bringing that to the festival, which is just what we all need.
Harlem Pride
Some other big names like Wyclef Jean, Major, Rupee, and more are going to be attending as well. This lineup reflects the amazing music and culture that African Americans have brought to New York City. Being held on Randall’s Island, the HFC is bringing history in as a factor as well.
Randall’s Island sits between East Harlem, the South Bronx, and Astoria, Queens. Harlem has done its part in the past with bringing culture to NYC. The Harlem Renaissance was the revival of African-American music, dance, art, fashion, literature, theater, politics, and scholarship centered in Harlem. This movement influenced a lot of the culture not only in Harlem, but in the whole city. The Bronx is the birthplace of hip hop, which is now one of the most popular genres of music in the world. Queens also holds a prominent place in the history of hip-hop and has produced some of the greatest stars that we know.
This history isn’t just a coincidence, the HFC is celebrating this culture and togetherness of the city. This event is definitely not one to miss. You can find tickets here.
