Essence was a monthly in my youth days. It became a six-times-a-year publication, then a quarterly publication.
In recent years, the company published six magazines in 2022, 2023 and 2024, and four in 2025. The “Special Collector’s Edition” shared on Thursday is the first of 2026. The print edition didn’t go away, but it wasn’t as popular. Now, there’s a “reimagined” Essence magazine, according to Richelieu Dennis, founder and executive chair of Sundial Group, which owns and produces the Essence Festival.
Announced during an Essence Festival of Culture media kickoff, the new Essence magazine features a larger format, high-quality paper, highly stylized photography, and a combination of listicles and longer-form journalism. It includes beauty, fashion, a Black-focused horoscope, and a story headlined “A Country’s Unpaid Debt.” Another headline reads “Dollars and Disparities” with “Black Tax” examples and a summary about how to make it work.
New Orleans, where the annual Essence Festival is held, is featured in the magazine, including a feature labeled “R&B Rising: The 504 Edition.” Other Louisiana regions are included in “The Black Travel Guide to Louisiana.” Read about Baton Rouge, Lafayette and the River Parishes.
The company published six magazines in 2022, 2023 and 2024, and four in 2025. The “Special Collector’s Edition” shared on Thursday is the first of 2026…