Essence Festival Delays Cause Lauryn Hill Near-Empty Superdome Performance

At the 2025 Essence Festival of Culture in New Orleans, Lauryn Hill performed her headline set well past midnight, starting around 2:30 a.m. and finishing near 3:37 a.m., to a largely diminished crowd in the Caesars Superdome. The delay was due to the festival running behind schedule, with multiple preceding acts exceeding their allotted times, pushing Hill's performance late into the night. Despite her history of tardiness, Essence Festival organizers took full responsibility for the scheduling issues and defended Hill, affirming she arrived on time and delivered a legendary performance. Fans and fellow artists rallied in support of Hill, criticizing the festival's management and emphasizing the late start was not the singer's fault. Some commentators and artists, including India Arie, called on the Essence Festival to reflect on and improve its organization after the event's mishandling. Overall, while the festival featured notable performers like Jill Scott, Maxwell, and Babyface, the scheduling chaos overshadowed Hill's set, sparking debate about event management and artist punctuality.