Glamazons,
There’s a reason I go to Essence Festival every year: it never disappoints when it comes to live music, celebrity sightings, giveaways and dance parties. I enjoyed a bit of all four with the Ford activities this year. If you caught my Daily #FordUp activities post, you may have stopped by yourself to enjoy the concerts in the Superlounge and some of the fab giveaways associated with the Ford Ride and Drive event. If not, be sure to catch it next year! It’s where I had the most fun all weekend! Here’s a quick recap of my adventures with Ford at Essence Fest!
Ford Booth at the Convention Center
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Wait, why was this so much fun?! I don’t know if it was the PlayDate team that hosted the Ford booth this year or celebrity sightings during SiriusXM live interviews (ahem, Uncle Charlie Wilson, Kelly Rowland, Usher, Monica, Iyanla Vanzant and so many more!) but I had a blast!
The SiriusXM celebrity appearance schedule for Saturday!
My friends and I danced in the cars, hula hooped, took red carpet-worthy pictures in the photo booth and more.
I finally laid eyes on the gorgeous 2017 Ford GT which will be the hottest thing on the road when it becomes available in late 2016 (pricing announced at that time).
The Ford GT at the Convention Center was sleek and silver (my favorite color!) and it boasts innovative features including light-weighting, aerodynamics (umm…a deployable rear wing!) and a 3.5-liter EcoBoost® production engine with a next-generation twin-turbo that produces more than 600 horsepower. Swoon!
We also signed up for the Ford Ride and Drive event to enter to win a new car (more on this later) and everyone was so nice and accommodating!
Kimberly Lachelle of Speed Beautiful at the Ford booth at the Convention Center
It was definitely one of the most lively stops at the Convention Center. “Don’t believe me, just watch…” the video below. (Sorry, I had to…)
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Ford Superlounge
I feel like a broken record but yes, the lounges are not to be neglected. More intimate than the MainStage, you’ll feel like you’re getting a semi-private concert from some of your favorite stars. This year, we caught Sevyn Streeter, SZA and Lianne La Havas in the Ford Superlounge.
And alongside the performances, it was super convenient to charge our phones in the charging station while of course, taking pictures at the Photo Booth. Plus there were goodies: for registering for the Ford Ride and Drive event, Lexi and I scored these cute shoe bags that I immediately put my heels in. Fun!
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Ford Goes Pink for Breast Cancer Awareness
I love brands that give back, especially for a cause as dear to my heart as breast cancer awareness. My mom is a breast cancer survivor, and I’ve lost two aunts to the disease so I was more than happy to see Ford being so proactive about raising awareness. And they put their money where their mouth is by donating $20 for each of the first 250 test drives to the Young Survival Coalition, a non-profit created to support and educate young women about breast cancer. It meant a lot to me to be able to contribute to that cause through Ford‘s platform this year.
Ford Car Giveaway and Ride and Drive Event
Growing up in a small town in Jersey, I’m such a car fanatic. We drive everywhere in Jersey and the car you choose says so much about your personality! That said, I always wanted to get a Ford Edge — something about a small girl like me (5’2″ on my tallest day) hopping out of a jeep gives me life abundantly. Well, yours truly and everyone that signed up for the Ford Ride and Drive program had the chance to test drive the Ford Edge as well as the Ford Focus Hatchback, Flex, Fusion, F-150, Taurus, Mustang, Escape and Explorer.
And as if test driving the cars wasn’t amazing enough, everyone who signed up was entered to win a Ford car (up to $30K). Nephew Tommy from the Steve Harvey Morning Show hosted while four finalists competed in a hilarious competition on Sunday before a winner was chosen. That winner is pretty much the luckiest person in America right now. LOL!
Between the intimate concerts, the party at the Ford booth, the car giveaway and their commitment to breast cancer awareness, Ford really outdid themselves at Essence Festival this year. I already can’t wait for next year! Did you hit up some of the Ford activities this year? What’s on your list for 2016? Let’s chat in the comments.
And stay tuned for a fun video recap of our time at the Ford booth with — you guessed it — lots of dancing, hula hooping and some exclusive footage of that gorgeous 2017 Ford GT.
Kisses,
Glamazon Jessica
This post is sponsored by Ford Motor Company by way of Style Influencers Group. The opinions expressed herein are those of Glamazons Blog and are not indicative of the opinions or positions of Ford Motor Company or Style Influencers Group.
