Now that all the coverage of the performances and style at this years Essence Fest has mellowed out, its time to talk about the elephant in the room: the concept that the festival facilitators have a new audience in mind. Namely, younger Black women .

Earlier this summer, my friend Loren and I made a road trip to New Orleans to attend in person for the first time. It was an exhilarating experience. Ms. Lauryn Hill and Missy Elliott killed it on stage, there was decadent Creole and Jamaican food everywhere I turned, and vibes were immaculate.

Although Im only 24 years old, and therefore younger than the festivals largest age demographic, Essences new leadership made it clear during panels and in advertising that theyre looking to expand their global audience through new branding as Essence Ventures over the next several years.

The 2020 launch of Girls United, a section of the magazine for Gen Z readers, piqued my interest as Essence began exploring new ways to maintain its relevance in a hyper-digital world. The median age for readers of the print magazine is 47 , which is generally reflective of the age range of women who attend the festival. I knew that its a space dominated by an older demographic than myself, where squads of aunties enjoy concerts and a little carefree debauchery at after-parties on Bourbon Street, often with their sorors.

On the first night of Essence Fest, young crowds were invited to Girls Uniteds first-ever festival kickback in a separate building of the convention center. The event promised to be an auntie-free zone with an abundance of Instagram-worthy photo-ops, live music from local artist 504 Icy Girl, and a casual appearance from Jabari Banks, who plays Will Smith on Peacocks Bel-Air. The Kickback is new territory for Gen Zers to act up without the pressures of the aunties this year at Essence Fest, Essence reporter Kenyatta Victoria wrote in the events description.

What Victoria meant to convey, I believe, was that this event and this space were created for those looking to, perhaps, partake in behavior that is associated with Gen Z: a little more body liberation, for example. But yeah, the phrase pressures of the aunties is pretty loaded.

Many older attendees of the festival were vocal about Essence catering to younger crowds with exclusive events and even having Megan Thee Stallion as a headliner. In a private Facebook group with more than 15,000 members, they voiced their opinions about feeling ostracized at a celebration that has historically centered their age demographic.