Lauryn Hill’s late-night Essence Festival set drew backlash on-line, although insiders say the true subject was poor planning by occasion organizers.

Lauryn Hill arrived onstage at 2:31 a.m. throughout the 2025 Essence Festival of Culture in New Orleans, delivering a full set to a virtually abandoned Caesars Superdome after hours of delays left the group drained and the venue principally cleared out.

The Friday night time kickoff on July 4 unraveled right into a logistical mess, with a jam-packed lineup that included Maxwell, Babyface, The Isley Brothers, GloRilla, Lucky Daye, and Coco Jones, every working delayed.

Hill, who was added to the invoice simply two days earlier than showtime, ended up closing the night time with a set that wrapped at 3:37 a.m. on Saturday.

According to The Times-Picayune/The New Orleans Advocate reporter Keith Spera, “the Superdome – which was never more than half full at any point Friday – was essentially empty.”

Lauryn Hill’s fame for late arrivals adopted her into the night time. She’s beforehand proven up hours late to live shows in cities like Atlanta and London, and has addressed the criticism head-on.

“Y’all lucky I make it on this stage every night!” she as soon as instructed a crowd, defending her timing.

She’s blamed delays on every part from perfectionism to vitality alignment to transportation points. In previous interviews, she’s cited a misplaced driver and the necessity to really feel “right” earlier than performing.

Still, sources near the occasion instructed AllHipHop the blame for the late begin doesn’t fall squarely on Hill. Promoters reportedly failed to regulate the schedule after including her to an already overloaded lineup, inflicting a domino impact of delays that pushed each act again.

Despite the sparse viewers, Lauryn Hill delivered a full efficiency, however the late hour left social media buzzing with criticism. Many blamed her instantly, regardless that the whole night time ran off schedule.

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