On day two of the 30th ESSENCE Festival, the Beautycon stage began with a discussion about redefining outdated beauty standards. Led by our senior beauty editor Akili King, panelist and WNBA athlete Kysre Gondrezick discussed the illusion of beauty standards, removing her lip fillers and breast implants, and leaning into her natural ‘90s beauty moment.
Following a Victoria’s Secret-sponsored chat about size-inclusivity, ESPN’s Cari Champion moderated a conversation with four-time Olympic Gold Medalist Serena Williams about her new active beauty brand, WYN Beauty. The Passion To Profit series let us in on her process turning her most iconic beauty moments––from beaded braids to winged liner––into a Black beauty empire. “Obviously I wanted something that could represent me and the way I look,” Williams told Champion.
Then, SheaMoisture and L’Oreal hosted their sponsored panels. The former featured actress Ryan Destiny and celebrity hairstylist Lacy Redway for an interactive look into festival hairstyles, while the latter had an intimate conversation about Black maternal health. Next, ESSENCE VP of Content, Nandi Howard, invited artist JT and content creator Simi Moonlight to the stage for the Beauty Interrupted panel. There, they discussed how style and beauty intersect and what it takes to be your authentic self, regardless of judgment and outside opinions.
The day ended with Texture On The Runway, where Beautycon collaborated with L’Oreal to show off editorial and runway braided styles: everything from sculpture-like twists to teased out manes. The show came together thanks to hairstylists Tippi Shorter and Dharius Thomas, and designer Theophilio. On that note, day two of Beautycon programming came to a close as we prepare for all the newness of tomorrow, the final day of this year’s ESSENCE Festival.
